Joseph Gordon-Levitt exits 'Sandman' due to creative differences with New Line

LOS ANGELES, March 6 (UPI) -- Actor and producer Joseph Gordon-Levitt has announced via Facebook that he has left the big-screen adaptation of Neil Gaiman's Sandman.

"Neil himself came on as an executive producer, we hired the excellent screenwriter, Jack Thorne, and we started in on the ambitious task of adapting one of the most beloved and boundary-pushing titles in the world of comics. I was pleased with the progress we were making, even though we still had quite a ways to go," Gordon-Levitt wrote.

"Recently, as you also might know if you like to follow these sorts of things, the sorta 'ownership' (for lack of a better term) of the Sandman material changed hands when Warner Brothers shifted the entire catalogue of Vertigo comics (an imprint of DC) to their subsidiary, New Line. And a few months ago, I came to realize that the folks at New Line and I just don't see eye to eye on what makes Sandman special, and what a film adaptation could/should be. So unfortunately, I decided to remove myself from the project. I wish nothing but the best for the team moving forward."

Gordon-Levitt, 35, is a former child star who transitioned successfully to adult roles in celebrated films such as The Walk, Inception, 500 Days of Summer, The Dark Knight Rises, Brick and Looper.