The new banner of The Sandman allows us to take a first look at Desperation , played by Donna Preston .
The actress is best known for How I Kill Your Bodyguard, Hard Cell, Apocalypse Wow and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald .
Despair is part of the Eternals , characters who embody various aspects of the universe and human experience: the same Dream ( Tom Sturridge ), otherwise known as Morpheus or by other names, is an Eternal . In the comics, Despair has the appearance of a stocky, flabby woman with pointed teeth and a hook on the ring with which she inflicts herself on the flesh. The live-action version seems less “extreme”, also because she – contrary to the original – she wears clothes.
Neil Gaiman , author of the comic and showrunner of the series, said he was proud of this transposition . The debut is expected on August 5 on Netflix .
You can see the banner below.
The banner with Despair
The producers
The first season will have ten episodes, and will adapt the stories Preludes , Nocturnes and The Doll’s House . The pilot was written by showrunner Allan Heinberg with Neil Gaiman himself and David S. Goyer . The latter are also executive producers. Some episodes will be directed by Toby Haynes ( Doctor Who , Sherlock , Black Mirror ).
The synopsis
A rich blend of modern mythology and dark fantasy in which contemporary fiction, historical drama and legend are seamlessly stitched together, The Sandman follows the people and places influenced by Morpheus, the King of Dreams, as he makes amends for cosmic mistakes – and humans – which he accomplished during his long existence.
The cast
The cast includes Tom Sturridge (Morpheus), Gwendoline Christie (Lucifer), Vivienne Acheampong (Lucienne), Charles Dance (Roderick Burgess), Sanjeev Bhaskar (Cain), Asim Chaudhry (Abele), Boyd Holbrook (Corinthian), Jenna Coleman (Johanna Constantine), David Thewlis (John Dee), Stephen Fry (Gilbert), Patton Oswalt (Matthew), Joely Richardson (Ethel Cripps), Kirby Howell-Baptiste (Death), Mason Alexander Park (Desire), Donna Preston (Despair), Niamh Walsh (Ethel Cripps young), Kyo Ra (Rose Walker), Razane Jammal (Lyta Hall), Sandra James Young (Unity Kincaid) and Eleanor Famyinka (Rachel) .
An ambitious project
It seems that the agreement between Netflix and Warner Bros. Television to make Sandman is “very massive”: some sources already describe it as “the most expensive TV series ever made by DC Entertainment “.
The showrunner
Allan Heinberg created the Young Avengers comic for Marvel, but has previously worked on the small screen in series such as Five in the Family, Sex and the City, A Mom to a Friend, The OC, Grey’s Anatomy, Looking, Scandal and The Catch . as well as writing the blockbuster Wonder Woman for Warner and DC Films.
A legendary comic
The original comic was published by DC Comics (through the Vertigo label ) between 1989 and 1996, and tells the story of Sogno , an anthropomorphic personification of dreams and stories. Her adventures, often tragic and painful, also include her brothers and sisters, the Eternals , who represent various aspects of the human experience such as Destiny, Desire, Despair and Delirium ; in addition, Sandman ‘s tales include many figures drawn from cultural and religious traditions from around the world, from Lucifer (who later became the protagonist of another comic series) to Odin , fromAzazel to Calliope .