The Sandman Season 2

The Sandman Season 2 promises to bring back much of the same cast from the successful first season of the series. Look for Tom Sturridge to lead the way.

The Sandman made waves when it debuted on Netflix in 2022, based on the DC Comics comic book of the same name written by Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg. Featuring characters established in other incarnations of Netflix television shows, The Sandman became a hit with viewers. Netflix renewed The Sandman for Season 2 in November 2022 after receiving positive reviews from critics and audiences alike.

Rotten Tomatoes currently ranks The Sandman with 87 percent on its Tomatometer and an Audience Score of 80 percent. It’s easy to see why, given the ensemble cast that includes Tom Sturridge, Boyd Holbrook, Patton Oswalt, David Thewlis, Gwendoline Christie, and Vivienne Acheampong.

However, confusion about what the arrangement is for The Sandman Season 2 has risen in recent months. This is primarily due to Netflix’s caginess about what they are calling the new season and who might return to the expensive series in the long term.

With that in mind, here is all we know about The Sandman Season 2, including Netflix’s plans, the premise of the new season, casting announcements, and a release date.

THE SANDMAN SEASON 2 HAS BEEN GREENLIT, BUT NETFLIX WON’T CALL IT AN OFFICIAL SECOND SEASON

After the success of The Sandman Season 1 and a stellar debut on Netflix, it was assumed that the series would easily coast to a Season 2 renewal. After all, The Hollywood Reporter confirmed that The Sandman eked out a victory by being streamed over one billion minutes in its first weekend on the platform. The series was renewed, but it appears that Netflix isn’t referring to the proposed new episodes as a new season of the show.

According to Variety, Netflix has not stated unequivocally that The Sandman has been renewed for Season 2 but that the new episodes will serve as “a continuation of ‘The Sandman’ world.” The subscription streaming platform has yet to confirm a proper episode count for this continuation.

Like many comic books similar to The Sandman, new stories are called “volumes,” and Netflix might take a page from the comics by eventually introducing Season 2 as a new volume of the series. The Sandman Season 1 included a surprise bonus episode two weeks after the series premiered on Netflix, so fans of the show could expect more of the same in Season 2.

THE SANDMAN SEASON 2 COULD BE BASED ON SEASONS OF MIST AND A GAME OF YOU

When we left off in The Sandman Season 1, audiences were treated to the unmaking of the Corinthian at a serial killer convention while Morpheus believes he was tricked into spilling the blood of a family member.

Many of the events surrounding Season 1 were adapted directly from the comic books by Neil Gaiman. Specifically, the first couple of collections of the comics were introduced in the Netflix series, and fans of the show believe that The Sandman Season 2 will complete the Dream Country storylines.

The collections that could see an adaptation in The Sandman Season 2 are referred to as Season of Mists and A Game of You. Variety reports that Gaiman confirmed Season of Mists would feature prominently in the new season. Within this collection, Morpheus returns to Hell, and Lucifer attempts a rematch with Morpheus.

This scenario practically guarantees the new season will be full of epic battles, much to the delight of its loyal fanbase.

MUCH OF THE CAST SHOULD RETURN FOR A SECOND SEASON

With the suggested premise for The Sandman Season 2 in mind, Netflix viewers should expect most of the main cast from Season 1 to appear in future episodes. This would include Tom Sturridge as Morpheus/Dream/The Sandman, the ruler of the Dreaming; Vivienne Acheampong as Lucienne, the librarian of the Dreaming; Gwendoline Christie as Lucifer Morningstar, the ruler of Hell; and Patton Oswalt in a voice role as Dream’s representative, Matthew the Raven.

The Sandman Season 2 might also include some possible flashbacks to Boyd Holbrook as the Corinthian. The character saw their demise in Season 1 of the hit show, as The Sandman defeated him in the season finale. However, the character is quite popular with fans of the comic books and the television adaptation, so it should be expected that Netflix could bring him back in some fashion.

A few costars from Season 1 may reprise their roles in The Sandman Season 2, like David Thewlis as John Dee, Jenna Coleman as Johanna Constantine, Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Death, Ferdinand Kingsley as Hob Gadling, and Mark Hamill as Mervyn Pumpkinhead.

Notable guest stars appeared in the bonus episode released by Netflix accompanying The Sandman Season 1, so it’s plausible they may return in some capacity in Season 2. Famous names like Sandra Oh, James McAvoy, and Michael Sheen all took part in voicing characters for the animated episode.

As far as new faces go, several popular Endless characters have yet to debut on The Sandman and could likely show up in Season 2. So far, audiences have not been treated to actors playing Destiny, Delirium, or Destruction. Their parents, Night and Time, also feature prominently in the comic books and could appear in the new season if given the proper storylines associated with these characters.

NETFLIX HAS NOT CONFIRMED A SANDMAN SEASON 2 RELEASE DATE

Netflix has not confirmed an official release date for The Sandman Season 2, but more episodes are coming. An expensive series takes time to write, produce, film, and promote, so the continuation of The Sandman might not see the light of day for a while. Screen Rant reports that The Sandman Season 1’s budget ballooned to nearly $15 million per episode, and Netflix might be taking its time in figuring out what’s next for the series.

After a long shoot that lasted months, The Sandman Season 1 wrapped its filming in August 2021. The series debuted on Netflix the following August after extensive post-production effects and editing. Since The Sandman Season 2 hasn’t begun filming yet, it should be expected that new episodes won’t arrive to the streamer until at least 2024.

Given the proper turnaround time to film and edit a series of this magnitude, viewers may have to wait until a possible Summer 2024 release for The Sandman Season 2.