 David Zelag Goodman wrote a nearly completely new screenplay, raising the age of death from 21 to 30 to allow for more actors to be considered for casting.York, Agutter, and William Devane were cast in the lead roles, with Devane announced to play an "elite" Sandman in May 1975.Devane withdrew from the project and replaced Roy Thinnes in Alfred Hitchcock's 1976 film "Family Plot".