Netflix's live-action television adaptation of Neil Gaiman's The Sandman has officially been renewed for Season 2 -- meaning fans can expect to see the original comic's groundbreaking transgender character, Wanda Mann, when the show returns.
Back in August -- just after The Sandman's Season 1 premiere and well before the Season 2 announcement earlier this month -- Gaiman sat down for an interview with Logo. During the interview, the comic book writer confirmed that Netflix's The Sandman would indeed introduce Wanda in the event of a renewal. "Oh, yes, absolutely," he said. "Wanda is an absolutely integral part of The Sandman universe and 'A Game of You.' And if we're lucky enough to make Season 2, Wanda will be a huge, huge part... It's going to be so much fun casting fabulous trans actors."
Who Is The Sandman's Wanda Mann?
Created by Gaiman and Shawn McManus, Wanda Mann first appeared in Sandman #32, cover-dated November 1991. As Gaiman mentioned, Wanda was a major player in A Game of You, the title's fifth major story arc, which dealt heavily with her identity as a transgender woman. In the comics, Wanda was also close friend of Barbie, who had a minor role in the first season of Netflix's Sandman, being played by Lily Travers.
While The Sandman's portrayal of Wanda and her gender identity was considered quite progressive for the early 1990s, Gaiman acknowledges that times have changed -- and hopes that Netflix's adaptation will be able to tackle the subject matter with even more care and authenticity. "My biggest request to the Sandman showrunner for when we get to the season with 'Game of You' in it is that we have trans men and trans women in the writers' room," Gaiman said back in 2020. "Not as consultants, but as writers."
Netflix's The Sandman Returns for Season 2
The first season of Netflix's The Sandman dropped on Aug. 5, consisting of 10 episodes. A two-part bonus episode was later released on Aug. 19. The Sandman Season 1 adapts the first two story arcs of Gaiman's original DC comic, Preludes & Nocturnes and The Doll's House, as well as the first few issues of the third arc, Dream Country.
Despite strong viewership, it was uncertain if Netflix would order a second season of The Sandman. However, news of a renewal finally came on Nov. 2. The Sandman Season 2 will likely tackle the rest of Dream Country; the comic's fourth arc, Season of Mists; and, given Wanda's involvement, A Game of You. Gaiman has also teased that the characters Destruction and Delirium will appear in Season 2, implying that it could touch upon the comic's seventh arc, Brief Lives, as well.
The Sandman Season 1 is currently streaming on Netflix. The series has been renewed for Season 2.
Source: Logo