The past few days have been quite interesting for New Line Cinema's comic book adaptation Sandman. On Friday, we reported that Eric Heisserer signed on to write the screenplay, based on a treatment written by David S. Goyer. Then yesterday, actor/director Joseph Gordon-Levitt dropped quite the bombshell, revealing that he is parting ways with the project. Shortly after the news was announced, Sandman co-creator Neil Gaiman took to his Twitter page to speak about the actor's exit on this highly-anticipated project.

"And, for the record, my respect for [Joseph Gordon-Levitt], is undiminished. Getting to know him was the best bit of the last round. He's special. I very much hope [to work together on something else]. I would love to work with [Joe] some more. He's smart, honest & really nice. Reminder for the curious: I don't own Sandman. DC Comics does. I don't choose who writes scripts, the director, producer or cast. The deal was done when I was 26, long ago, & I figured it was worth it...He's an original character, created by me, Mike Dringenberg & Sam Kieth, but done as Work For Hire for DC Comics."

Joseph Gordon-Levitt came aboard to star and direct the Sandman adaptation back in December 2013, but he later admitted that he was only producing. Tom Hiddleston was being sought to play Morpheus, but his involvement was never confirmed. Now that Joseph Gordon-Levitt has parted ways, it isn't known who will star and direct.

On Friday, it was reported taht Joseph Gordon-Levitt was actually going to play Morpheus, the personification of Dreams in a family known as The Endless, whose members represent other aspects of life such as Death, Delirium, Desire, Destruction, Despair and Destiny. The story follows Morpheus, who escapes after being held captive by a wizard for the past 70 years. He goes on a journey to get revenge for his imprisonment, while trying to rebuild his empire and adapt to the current society.

Jack Thorne (A Long Way Down) was attached to write the script back in 2014, but it isn't known if Eric Heisserer will rewrite his screenplay, or start over from scratch. New Line is hoping to turn this movie into a full trilogy, but that will surely depend on how Sandman fares at the box office. New Line hasn't set a release date at this time, and it isn't known when production may begin. Take a look at Neil Gaiman's tweets below, and stay tuned for more on Sandman.