The Sandman: Netflix cancels hit show after season two amid Neil Gaiman allegations

The series will conclude with its upcoming second season, which is set to premiere later this year.

The cancellation comes shortly after Gaiman denied allegations of “non-consensual sexual activity” following accusations of assault from multiple women earlier this month.

The American Gods author, 64, was the subject of an extensive New York Magazine article featuring interviews with eight women who accused him of sexual assault. Among them were a former babysitter from New Zealand and a caretaker from his Woodstock, New York, property.

Gaiman has strongly denied these claims. In a blog post, the author said: “Some of the horrible stories now being told simply never happened, while others have been so distorted from what actually took place that they bear no relationship to reality.

“I am prepared to take responsibility for any missteps I made. I’m not willing to turn my back on the truth, and I can’t accept being described as someone I am not, and cannot and will not admit to doing things I didn’t do.”

Showrunner Allan Heinberg gave a statement to Variety, in which he said: “The Sandman series has always been focused exclusively on Dream’s story, and back in 2022, when we looked at the remaining Dream material from the comics, we knew we only had enough story for one more season.

“We are extremely grateful to Netflix for bringing the team all back together and giving us the time and resources to make a faithful adaptation in a way that we hope will surprise and delight the comics’ loyal readers as well as fans of our show.”

Since the allegations first surfaced in a Tortoise podcast last July, several adaptations of his work have been affected. Last year, it was announced that he would no longer serve as a producer on Good Omens, the Prime Video series that will now conclude with a single episode instead of a planned third season.

Disney also halted production on a film adaptation of Gaiman’s The Graveyard Book, while Netflix canceled Dead Boy Detectives, though it remains unclear whether that decision was connected to the allegations. A planned musical adaptation of Coraline was scrapped earlier this week too.