The first pictures of Gwendoline Christie as Lucifer in Netflix's The Sandman confirm the series' commitment to presenting an accurate adaptation of the classic graphic novel series. The two posters, which were released as part of the DC FanDome 2021 virtual event, show a close-up of Christie's face framed by golden hair and the tops of a pair of bat-wings. This is consistent with Lucifer's appearance in the original The Sandman comics.
Originally published across 75 monthly issues and one special from 1989 to 1996, The Sandman was one of the most noteworthy series to come out of DC Comics' Vertigo imprint for adults. Detailing an elaborate mythology built around Dream of the Endless, who was one of seven god-like beings born of the subconscious needs of humanity, the series went on to win multiple awards and helped to establish the idea that sophisticated stories for adults could be told through the comic book medium. The Sandman went on to inspire a number of spin-offs and specials based around the characters who populated the world Neil Gaiman had curated. The most popular of these was a solo series devoted to Gaiman's take on the fallen angel Lucifer, who abandoned Hell to open a piano bar in Los Angeles. This, in turn, inspired a television series starring Tom Ellis as the Devil himself, which recently ended its six-season run.
Given the popularity of the Lucifer series, many are confused as to how Lucifer can be played by a woman in the Netflix adaptation of The Sandman. Some were quick to blame "woke culture," pointing to other instances of The Sandman showrunners attempting to diversify the series' ensemble, with the apparent race and genders of several characters being changed for the adaptation. It should be noted, however, that many of the characters in The Sandman are not human and some (like the Endless) are said to appear to mortals in the form of whatever the mortal in question thinks a god of Dreams or manifestation of Death should look like. For such beings, gender is a matter of choice, as is their appearance.
This is certainly the case for Lucifer, who was originally modeled on gender-bending singer David Bowie. Lucifer was shown on several occasions to have no genitalia, male or female, though he identified as male and made use of male pronouns when he was not speaking of himself using the Royal we. This was the case for all angels in the Vertigo Comics' universe and was based around the belief held by some theologians that angels, as beings of pure spirit, would not have reproductive organs since they were never intended to reproduce as animals do. Lucifer was also shown to have some ability to control his appearance, as his solo series ended with him refusing to heal a scar that had been left on his face to prove he was beyond vanity.
Given that, there is no reason that Lucifer could not take on a strong, feminine form and no reason why Gwendoline Christie should not play the bat-winged King of Hell in Netflix's The Sandman. Author Neil Gaiman made this point quite clear on Twitter, when one self-described "Sandman purist" confronted him regarding Christie's casting, saying he was annoyed by the "constant recasting of male characters to female actresses." Gaiman replied that he suspected he was a far greater purist when it came to The Sandman than anyone else, and that he had no complaints about "a genderless androgynous character without a penis being played by a fabulous actor who fortunately also doesn’t have a penis."