What in the world ever happened to Brad Bird?

You know, when a dude has managed to direct two out of three of my favorite animated movies in "The Iron Giant" and "Ratatouille" (with only Hayao Miyazaki's "Kiki's Delivery Service" sandwiched in between), it really is odd to watch him pretty much just disappear, but that seems to be exactly what's happened to Brad Bird.

For the last few (or maybe more) years, he's been trying desperately to mount a live-action take on the novel "1906," which would just be a blast. Actually, I didn't really care for the book by James Dalessandro, but it's subject matter - the politically corrupt world of San Francisco in the titular year, and the great earthquake that brought it all crumbling down - is just ripe for Bird's natural gift for storytelling.

Though that's still somehow listed as a "2012" project at the IMDB, it still has no cast that I know of, and I'm fairly certain that Warner Bros. has balked at putting up the scratch Bird would need to pull it off - or apparently, even really get started.

Now, however, it seems that J.J. Abrams and Tom Cruise (it apparently does help to have friends in high places) might step in to give him something almost as fun to work with. With a May 27, 2011, release date already set and filming set to begin this summer on "Mission Impossible IV," the duo have yet to settle on one minor question: Who should direct this?

Well, it seems they've already talked with "Zombieland" director Ruben Fleischer and Edgar Wright, who has "Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World" coming this summer (bring it on, already!), and now you can add the most intriguing choice, Bird, to that list too.

I know that's a lot to write about a movie that's so far off, but I really just adore spy movies, and once this one finally comes together it should just be nothing but fun - especially in the hand of Brad Bird or Edgar Wright.

OK, after that today, it's all about Tyler Perry and Lee Daniels (well, until we get to the finale, at least.)

Because the man feels it's both his right and duty to direct at least two movies every year, Tyler Perry has a new movie, "Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too?", coming out next week. And though I've seen and at least somewhat enjoyed every movie the man has made so far (how many directors can you really say that about?), this is the first one I'm really just not looking forward to, because it's - obviously - the sequel to what I think was his worst movie so far.

But here today, it's not about any of that, but instead what's happening with his next movie, which should just be epicly good. His take on the play "For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When the Rainbow Is Enuf" by Ntozake Shange is set to shoot in New York this June, for a January 2011 release (meaning, rather amazingly, the man will only have one movie in theaters this year), and it's not surprisingly attracting some big names.

Mariah Carey, who proved she can really act in Daniels' "Precious," and "Why Did I Get Married" star Janet Jackson are the latest big names to join a cast that already has Whoopi Goldberg, Phylicia Rashad, Jurnee Smollett, Kimberly Elise (aka Perry's "Mad Black Woman"), Loretta Devine and singer Macy Gray. He apparently wanted Beyonce, Oprah and Halle Berry, too, but perhaps even Tyler Perry can't get everything he wants.

One of Perry's greatest strengths has always been his ability to write strong, well-rounded parts for women, so this flick should be a dream fit, and I can't wait to see what he comes up with.

And Daniels, a Perry protege of sorts, is also putting together a pretty fascinating cast for "Selma," which will be his followup to "Precious" and be about Martin Luther King Jr.'s pivotal 1965 march from Selma to Montgomery, Ala.

Already announced are Hugh Jackman as Sheriff Jim Clark, "Precious" vet Lenny Kravitz as Andrew Young and British actor David Oyelowo as Dr. King himself, and now you can add to that Liam Neeson as Lyndon Johnson and Cedric the Entertainer as King cohort Ralph Abernathy. Robert De Niro had earlier been rumored to be playing George Wallace, which would have been remarkable, but that apparently isn't happening. Even so, that's a pretty wild cast for this epic saga, so definitely keep your eyes on this one.

And finally, I'll leave you today with easily the funniest thing I found online this morning. Though as a matter of habit I usually go to bed by 11 p.m., on those occasions when I happen to be up later, I always go out of my way to watch Conan O'Brien, wherever he might be. For folks who make a whole lot more money than I do, he's on a live tour this summer, and hopefully headed back to late night as soon as this fall on Fox, but in the meantime singer/songwriter/comic Ben Sheehan has come up with this little tribute that fits this spirit of CoCo perfectly. Set to the tune of Diddy's "I'll Be Missing You" (which of course is already a grand pilferation from the Police), "I'll Be Watching You (Miss You Coco)" is as genuinely funny as it is simply bizarre. Enjoy, and have a perfectly pleasant Thursday. Peace out.

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