Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of The Sandman tells the tale of a timeless, anthropomorphic being who lords over a realm of dreams. But the titular being in question isn’t the only supernatural power player with an important role in shaping this story. In The Sandman’s latest trailer that dropped as a part of this year’s Netflix Geeked Week, Dream of the Endless (Tom Sturridge) is finally on the verge of breaking free from his 75 years of imprisonment on the mortal plane at the hands of human occultists.
Though time means little to people like Dream, his absence from the Dreaming — a reality made of all the dreams living creatures create — comes with consequences that only those touched by magic like Johanna Constantine (Jenna Coleman) can perceive. The new trailer features a number of glimpses of how, in Dream’s absence, the Dreaming’s become a warped, broken place where nightmares like the Corinthian (Boyd Holbrook) are free to run wild and wreak havoc on people’s minds. Like in Neil Gaiman’s original novel, The Sandman’s trailer highlights how much of a mess the Dreaming becomes in Dream’s absence and how his allies like librarian Lucienne (Vivienne Acheampong) and Matthew the Raven (Patton Oswalt) will rally to put things right. What the trailer leaves unclear, though, is whether Netflix’s The Sandman will feature any surprising cameos from unexpected DC Comics characters the way the source material does.
The Sandman also stars Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Gwendoline Christie, Charles Dance, Asim Chaudhry, Sanjeev Bhaskar, Mason Alexander Park, and Donna Preston. The series hits Netflix on August 5th.
