There’s been talk of a Sandman movie for over a decade, and that’s about how long a big-screen adaptation of the popular Neil Gaiman comic book series has been in development hell.
More recently, Kick-Ass director Matthew Vaughn expressed interest several times in adapting the Vertigo Comics series, which had a 75-issue run from 1989 through 1996.
Now, Vaughn said he thinks Sandman would be better off an an HBO series than as a theatrical film.
“I think it would make an amazing HBO series, you know, where you can just really create that world,” Vaughn told MTV News. “There’s too much to get into an hour and a half, two hours.”
Vaughn said he spoke to Gaiman about the prospect of doing a Sandman series, but didn’t mention what the author’s reaction was to his idea.
The director already brought one of Gaiman’s creations to the big screen with 2007’s Stardust, which he co-wrote and directed.
Vaughn’s ideas seem to be just that for now. Warner Bros holds the rights to Sandman, so the studio would have to be ready to put this property back on the board. Much like what happened with Watchmen, most people deem Sandman as difficult to adapt as a film, given its complexity, and thought it might do better as a cable series.
I think a cable network like HBO would be a great place to bring Sandman, much like the way they did for the Charlaine Harris “Sookie Stackhouse/Southern Vampire” books with True Blood. But a Sandman series would definitely have to be given a big budget for locations, sets, and guest stars, as the Sandman world is quite elaborate. There’s scenes in various places on Earth, but also in Hell and in the realms of The Endless (which “Sandman” Morpheus and his siblings are known as).
The most important part to tackle would be the cast of Morpheus. He’s pretty much the greatest non-superhero comic book character ever created, so it’d either have to be an unknown actor who’s easily likable or a famous actor who’s already beloved. This particular casting could make or break the television series (same issue even if it becomes a theatrical film). Also, who would play his sister Death, the character who sparked the surge of thousands of Ankh-wearing goth girls? (Deathis supposed to be getting her own big-screen debut, with Gaiman directing and Guillermo del Toro producing, though there’s still no word on when production on this will start.)
What do you think of the idea of making a Sandman cable television series? Who should play the dream king Morpheus and his sister Death?
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[Source: MTV]
Damn that would be AWESOME! Loved Sandman comics since I was a teen, salivating at the idea of this.
Comment by Darren Albert — March 15, 2010 @ 7:25 am