Surprise! A bonus of The Sandman just premiered on Netflix, continuing the story of Morpheus and his journeys in the Dreaming and waking world. Here’s everything you need to know about Episode 11, titled “A Dream of a Thousand Cats/Calliope.”
And if you want to freak out friends, family, and maybe your pets, don't forget to enter for a chance to win a replica of Dream’s magical helmet.
In the two-part story collection, a Siamese cat dreaming of a new world and a writer in desperate need of inspiration cross paths with Morpheus.
This episode is an adaptation of Dream Country, the arc that spans issues 17-20 of The Sandman comic, written by Neil Gaiman.
It includes two of the four stories from that arc: “A Dream of a Thousand Cats” and “Calliope.”
In the comics, Dream Country follows The Doll’s House, the arc depicted in Episodes 7-10 of the series.
“A Dream of a Thousand Cats/Calliope” is streaming now.
“A Dream of a Thousand Cats” is the first animated Sandman story. Dutch animator Hisko Hulsing served as director and production designer for the episode.
“We endeavored to make the animated version of ‘A Dream of a Thousand Cats’ as mesmerizing and hypnotic as we could by utilizing the magic of real oil paintings on canvas,” Hulsing explains. “We combined the paintings with classically drawn 2D animation, based on realistic 3D animation of telepathic cats in order to create a trippy world that feels both grounded and dreamy at the same time. Untold Studio’s in London created the breathtaking 3D animation of the cats. The wonderful 2D animation, oil paintings and stylizing were all done at Submarine Studio’s in Amsterdam.”
Tom Sturridge reprises his role as Dream, aka Morpheus, voicing an animated, feline version of himself.
“A Dream of a Thousand Cats” also includes this star-studded voiceover cast:
Sandra Oh as The Prophet
Rosie Day as The Tabby Kitten
David Gyasi as The Grey Cat
Joe Lycett as The Black Cat
Neil Gaiman as Crow/Skull Bird
James McAvoy as Golden-Haired Man
David Tennant as Don and Georgia Tennant as Laura Lynn
Michael Sheen as Paul and Anna Lundberg as Marion
Nonso Anozie as Wyvern
Diane Morgan as Gryphon
Tom Wu as Hippogriff
Executive producer Allan Heinberg presented the role to Oh — whom he’d worked with previously on Grey’s Anatomy — when they reunited for breakfast in London.
“She was really interested in the show and was asking a lot of great questions,” Heinberg recalls. “And so I said, ‘Is there any part of you interested in voicing this incredible cat?’ And she was too intrigued to say no.”
David Tennant and Michael Sheen, who worked on Gaiman’s show Good Omens, also came on board, as well as their respective real-life partners, Georgia Tennant and Anna Lundberg. McAvoy came from the Audible version of The Sandman.
And Sandman fans will delight in hearing creator Neil Gaiman as a talking bird.
“He’s got one of the best voices,” Heinberg says. “Once we got into the booth, there was nothing reticent about him. He really wanted to be more crowlike and would flap his arms and fearlessly work for it.”
Melissanthi Mahut as Calliope
Arthur Darvill as Richard Madoc
Nina Wadia as Fate Mother
Souad Faress as Fate Crone
Dinita Gohil as Fate Maiden
Kevin Harvey as Larry
Amita Suman as Nora
Derek Jacobi as Erasmus Fry
Actor Melissanthi Mahut, who auditioned for the titular role/Greek muse, was a revelation for Heinberg.
“With Melissanthi, we got her self-tape, her audition. And that was it. It was nobody else,” he explains. “The fact that she’s of Greek ancestry made it even more perfect. I was not familiar with her work at the time, but I was absolutely blown away by her.”
Heinberg was equally impressed with Arthur Darvill, with whom Gaiman had worked on Doctor Who.
“Once Arthur was available and game, we didn’t look anywhere else. He was the Ric Madoc of our dreams, and, in performance, even more so. I think he shows you this man’s soul and somehow makes him not a monster.”
And the addition of legendary actor Derek Jacobi rounded out the triumvirate. “That’s a tough role,” Heinberg says of Jacobi’s character, the sadistic Erasmus Fry. “His charm and wit and intelligence... we were extremely lucky. This is a very difficult story. And I think the presence of those three actors made it really compelling and human and deeply moving.”
You can watch all of their performances in the bonus episode, streaming now. Get a sneak peek below:
