Is The Sandman based on a book?

On Aug. 5, The Sandman will finally arrive on Netflix and people everywhere can hardly contain their excitement. It’s one of the highly anticipated Netflix releases of the year and will likely be the talk of the town once it drops.

The Sandman is an upcoming fantasy series developed and executive produced by Neil Gaiman, David S. Goyer, and Allan Heinberg. Gaiman, Goyer, and Heinberg also co-wrote the first episode together, with Heinberg credited as showrunner. There were several directors and many other writers on board as well.

It follows an immortal being named The Sandman, also known as Morpheus or Dream of the Endless, the ruler of the dream world. After being imprisoned for over a century, Dream finally escapes from his captors and sets out on a mission to find his stolen things and put his broken kingdom back in order.

Tom Sturridge plays the titular character. You might know Sturridge from his most recent roles in Velvet Buzzsaw and Irma Vep. The rest of the talented cast includes Gwendoline Christie, Jenna Coleman, Vivienne Acheampong, Boyd Holbrook, Charles Dance, Asim Chaudhry, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Mason Alexander Park, and others.

Since many Netflix shows are based on books, you might be wondering if The Sandman is a part of the list. We’ve got you covered! We shared whether or not the fantasy series is an adaptation of a novel.

Is The Sandman based on a book?

Yes, but not your typical book. The fantasy series is based on the critically acclaimed DC comic book series of the same name by Neil Gaiman. The series ran for 75 issues from 1989 to 1996. It was reportedly one of the first comics ever to be featured on The New York Times Best Seller list.

There had been many unsuccessful attempts at adapting the popular comic book series, with the first attempt in 1991. The attempts started as film adaptations, but they all fell through. There had also been several unsuccessful attempts at adapting the comic into a television series until it found its home at Netflix. In July 2019, Netflix signed a deal with Warner Bros. TV to produce a Sandman original series with 11 episodes. Later, the total episode count was changed to 10 episodes.

Since The Sandman is based on a comic book series, there will be plenty of story left to be told in future seasons if Netflix chooses to renew.

Check out the gripping official trailer to get you pumped for the show’s release!

The Sandman will make its way to Netflix on Aug. 5 at 12:00 a.m. PT/3:00 a.m. ET. Will you be watching the fantasy series?