It’s taken 30 years to bring Neil Gaiman’s The Sandman to screen, and Gaiman, who serves as an executive producer on the show, made sure there’s plenty of Easter eggs and hidden references for fans. We’ve gathered some of the best Sandman morsels, as well as fun anecdotes from the cast. Enjoy!
Dave McKean, the artist who designed the cover art for all 75 issues of The Sandman comic, came out of retirement to design the end credits for all 10 episodes of the show. Fashion designer Giles Deacon also turned McKean’s works into a costume for Lucifer (Gwendoline Christie). Check out Tudum’s full interview with Deacon.
Game of Thrones mastermind George R.R. Martin once turned down Neil Gaiman’s pitch for The Sandman. Watch the two legends in conversation together.
In Episode 6, different versions of Dream are shown throughout the centuries. Actor Tom Sturridge’s favorite look? The 1689 long-haired Morpheus, which he described as having a fun Interview with the Vampire quality.
Lucifer’s lavish costumes were designed by Christie’s real-life partner, Deacon.
Fan favorite Merv Pumpkinhead was played by Nicholas Anscombe in an actual scarecrow suit working in front of green screens. His voice was none other than Luke Skywalker himself, Mark Hamill.
Death’s outfit is very faithful to her depiction in the comics, but actor Kirby Howell-Baptiste says costumers had to try different versions of Death’s ankh necklace to find one that was the right size and fell correctly on her chest. She loved the ankh so much she wore one during press interviews. Check out Tudum’s full interview with Howell-Baptiste.
Actors John Cameron Mitchell (Hal) and Mason Alexander Park (Desire) both played the lead in Hedwig and the Angry Inch, with Mitchell originating the role. Check out Tudum’s full interview with Mitchell.
Desire’s (Mason Alexander Park) hair is loosely based on James Dean’s iconic look.
While Johnston went for a glam look with Desire, he went the opposite route and “scrubbed every bit of makeup” off Despair (Donna Preston). In addition to no makeup, they put Despair in very unglamorous shoes: Crocs.
The adorable Gregory the Gargoyle, who fans were heartbroken to see absorbed into the Endless, was really a man in a green suit holding a sculpture of the lovable creature’s head.
According to hair-and-makeup designer Graham Johnston, Lucifer’s curls were intentionally very soft and angelic. He was inspired by paintings of cherubs by Botticelli and Michelangelo.
The character of Gilbert (aka Fiddler’s Green) is based upon real-life English author G.K. Chesterton. Actor Stephen Fry tells Tudum he greatly admired Chesterton as a child, so he’s playing a character inspired by someone he was inspired by.
Since Desire’s powers center on love, the set of their red lair was inspired by the interior of a heart.
Three real-life birds portrayed Matthew the Raven (voiced by Patton Oswalt). CGI and puppet versions also existed. One of the ravens was named Mr. T.
The Corinthian’s sunglasses were so dark that actor Boyd Holbrook initially had trouble adjusting to them. The actor tells Tudum that he had “less dark” pairs for when his character had props or obstacles in his scene so he wouldn’t trip over them.
Because of COVID, the production team had to shoot the diner episode all in one location. It was like a theater troupe, showrunner Allan Heinberg says. They rehearsed it and shot it in sequence like a play, and the cast was on set for every shot.
The gates of hell were real, and it took a team of sculptors a month to create the 25-foot-wide, 20 foot tall set piece, according to production designer Jon Gary Steele, who’s known for his years of work on Outlander.
In the scene with Morpheus’ former lover, Nada, an African queen, real flames are used throughout, so the set had to be doused with fire retardant.
In Episode 7, Jed Walker (Eddie Karanja) is seen wearing a Static Shock T-shirt. Static was a Black superhero created in the ’90s for Milestone Media, whose founders felt heroes of color were underrepresented at the time. Static landed his own animated TV series, Static Shock (which Jed watches in the hotel), and had comics published through DC.
In Episode 8, among the villains who show up on the monitors in young Jed’s superhero headquarters include DC’s Captain Cold and Psycho-Pirate. Superheroes such as Batman and The Flash can also be seen on screen.
In the comic books, Lyta Hall (Razane Jammal) is the daughter of Wonder Woman and Steve Trevor, who were portrayed on film by Gal Gadot and Chris Pine, respectively. Her lineage is not referenced in Season 1 of The Sandman.
