Dead Boy Detectives, a live-action dramatisation set to air on HBO Max, may soon begin production. There has been radio silence on the show since the streamer said they had picked it up for a full season, but a fresh rumour from Production Weekly claims shooting will begin in November. Furthermore, the update appears to clarify that production will continue to take place in Vancouver, British Columbia and that it would remain with HBO Max despite the recent changes in the business. The projected completion date of production at that point is March 2023. The ghosts of two young boys, Edwin Paine and Charles Rowland, who have rejected the idea of moving on to the afterlife in favour of solving supernatural crimes with the help of their living, psychic friend Crystal Palace, star in Neil Gaiman’s macabre horror spinoff of the DC comic series The Sandman, titled Dead Boy Detectives.
They were created by Gaiman and Matt Wagner and made their debut in 1991’s The Sandman #25. As the ghost lads investigate, they must deal with their own feelings of loss and sadness, making for an eight-part series that combines aspects of classic horror and detective fiction. Edwin, Charles, and Crystal will be played by George Rexstrew, Jayden Revri, and Kassius Nelson, respectively, in the series. This will be Rexstrew’s first appearance on television since he graduated from LAMDA. Ruth Connell, who previously played Night Nurse on Doom Patrol, is also returning for this season.
Joining them are Briana Cuoco, Alexander Calvert, Yuyu Kitamura, Jenn Lyon, and Ruth Connell. Steve Yockey, who also created the acclaimed HBO Max series The Flight Attendant, is the brains behind Dead Boy Detectives and serves as the show’s executive producer and showrunner. Along with DC alums Jeremy Carver, Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and David Madden, Yockey wrote the pilot episode and serves as an executive producer for the show under the Berlanti Productions umbrella. This show is a co-production between us and Warner Bros. Television. It’s understandable that Dead Boy Detectives would be worried after the recent massacre at HBO Max.
As a result of Warner Bros. and Discovery merging, several prominent DC properties have been cancelled, with the highly publicised cancellation of Batgirl serving as the catalyst for the extensive shakeup. Also around this time, Berlanti’s involvement with the Kevin Smith film series Strange Adventures was cancelled due to the high production costs associated with a series starring less well-known characters. Meanwhile, because of the unprecedented popularity of The Sandman on Netflix, both Gaiman and his properties are at an all-time high.
Both Good Omens and American Gods have been hugely popular during their respective runs. Although Dead Boy Detectives lacks the benefit of the creator’s hands-on participation, the show’s potential is bolstered by the talent of its writers and the creator’s reputation. Production on Dead Boy Detectives will start in the fall.