Gwendoline Christie is making a big return to television after her seasons of playing Brienne of Tarth for Game of Thrones, but she certainly won’t be playing a warrior woman-turned-knight for Netflix’s upcoming adaptation of The Sandman. For The Sandman, Christie will be playing the character of Lucifer. And as the first look at her character proves, she won’t be any more like Netflix’s other Lucifer than she’ll be like Brienne of Tarth.
The Sandman, based on the landmark comic series of the same name by none other than Coraline and Good Omens scribe Neil Gaiman, will run for eleven episodes and showcase a star-studded cast. And while the show doesn’t even have a premiere date just yet, let alone any episodes, it’s probably safe to say that Gwendoline Christie as Lucifer will be a standout. Check out the first look, courtesy of DC FanDome 2021:
The first look isn’t even footage from The Sandman, but it’s already clear that this will be Gwendoline Christie playing a character unlike any other she has played before, including the iconic Brienne of Tarth. The text on the image reads “NEVER PLAY GAMES WITH LUCIFER,” and I know that I certainly wouldn’t if I crossed paths with the devil and the devil looked at me like that. I never would have believed Brienne as ruler of Hell, but I can definitely believe it of Christie here. Let it not be said that she lacks versatility as an actress!
The first image is focused on Gwendoline Christie’s face and expression as Lucifer, so there’s not a wide enough shot to show off her wings. Fortunately, a second image has released as well to prove that The Sandman’s Lucifer is no less unnerving from the back than from the front. Check out Lucifer’s wings:
In case you thought that The Sandman hailing from Neil Gaiman meant that Lucifer would have the same kinds of feathered wings as Crowley and Aziraphale over on Good Omens, then this image alone should prove otherwise! I’d say that they look more like the wings of a bat than anything else, and far creepier than anything that Batman has ever worn.
The Sandman will blend modern myth with dark fantasy to combine contemporary fiction, historical drama, and legend. If Gwendoline Christie’s Lucifer is anything like the Lucifer of legend, then the advice to “NEVER PLAY GAMES” with the character is probably worth listening to. But then, there wouldn’t be much of a TV show if everybody always made the smartest and safest decisions, would there?
The show will follow the places and people who are being affected by Morpheus, the Dream King. He attempts to fix the mistakes he has made over his many, many years of existence, which range from cosmic mistakes to human mistakes. Tom Sturridge is on board The Sandman to play Morpheus, and he and Gwendoline Christie are joined by Sanjeev Bhaskar and Asim Chaudhry as Cain and Abel, Christie’s fellow Game of Thrones alum Charles Dance as Roderick Burgess, Vivienne Acheampong as Lucienne, Boyd Holbrook as The Corinthian, Kirby Howell-Baptiste as Death, Mason Alexander Park as Desire, Donna Preston as Despair, Doctor Who’s Jenna Coleman as Johanna Constantine, Joely Richardson and Niamh Walsh as Ethel Cripps, and more.
Netflix hasn’t named an official premiere date for The Sandman just yet, but there’s still a chance that it could be ready to debut on the streamer before the end of 2021. For now, you can always check out our rundown of Netflix premiere dates for the shows that already are guaranteed before the end of the year.
