There is so much to love about The Sandman‘s surprise drop for fans, out now on Netflix: a bonus episode, an amazing cast, and it’s both animated and live action!
A two-part bonus episode, featuring the stories of “A Dream of a Thousand Cats” (animated) and “Calliope” (live-action), starring Tom Sturridge as Dream, is now available on the streaming service.
The “A Dream of a Thousand Cats” guest voice cast includes: 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, and Tom Wu as Hippogriff. (Yes, there are Good Omens and Staged reunions!)
In “Calliope,” the guest cast includes 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, and Derek Jacobi as Erasmus Fry. (Fun fact: Gaiman wrote the Doctor Who episode “The Doctor’s Wife,” which starred Darvill.)
“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,” Hisko Hulsing, who directed and did production design on that part of the bonus episode, said in a statement.
“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 Studios in Amsterdam.”
“Calliope” was directed by Louise Hooper, with production design by Gary Steele. The bonus episode was developed and executive produced by Gaiman, David S. Goyer, and Allan Heinberg. The teleplay is by Catherine Smyth-McMullen. It was produced by Sam Mucke.
The first season of The Sandman premiered on August 5. The series is #1 on the Netflix Top 10 TV list (English) for the second week in a row, amassing 196.98 Million hours viewed since its debut (August 5-14). The series also appeared in the Top 10 in 93 countries.
The Sandman, Season 1, Streaming now, Netflix
