We've know for a while now that Netflix's adaptation of The Sandman would introduce a new Constantine in place of the more familiar DC Comics occultist, but creator Neil Gaiman doesn't actually consider Jenna Coleman's take on the character to be a "gender-switched" interpretation of John.
Responding to a fan on Twitter, Gaiman explained that Johanna is simply the "current embodiment of the Constantine life-force."
Lady Johanna Constantine does appear in the comics - more frequently than John, incidentally - and since this series is predominantly set over 30 years after Gaiman's original tale, who's to say another "aspect" of Constantine wouldn't be operating in this timeline?
In any event, Coleman does a terrific job in the role, and you can get a glimpse of her performance in the new clip below.
"There is another world that waits for all of us when we close our eyes and sleep — a place called the Dreaming, where The Sandman, Master of Dreams (Tom Sturridge), gives shape to all of our deepest fears and fantasies. But when Dream is unexpectedly captured and held prisoner for a century, his absence sets off a series of events that will change both the dreaming and waking worlds forever. To restore order, Dream must journey across different worlds and timelines to mend the mistakes he’s made during his vast existence, revisiting old friends and foes, and meeting new entities — both cosmic and human — along the way."
The Sandman also stars Kirby Howell Baptiste as Death, Boyd Holbrook as The Corinthian, Donna Preston as Despair, Stephen Fry as Gilbert, Mason Alexander Park as Desire, Charles Dance as black magician Roderick Burgess, and Sanjeeve Bhaskar as Cain. Joely Richardson will play Ethel Cripps, while David Thewlis will take on the role of her son John Dee, aka the deranged Dr. Destiny.
The 10-episode first season of The Sandman will adapt the first two arcs of the Vertigo comics series, "Preludes and Nocturnes" and "The Doll's House."