brad bird
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Disney has been casting an impressively wide net with the filmmakers they’ve recruited for their resurgent ‘Star Wars’ film series, tapping everyone from J.J. Abrams to Ron Howard for their contributions. And those are just the directors whose films have been realized to date. The list also includes upcoming projects with David Benioff and D.B. Weiss and abortive efforts from the likes of Josh Trank. And now Brad Bird, best known for animated projects like ‘The Iron Giant’ and ‘The Incredibles’, may be joining their ranks.

While speaking to Fandango in advance of the June release of ‘Incredibles 2’, Bird was asked about his involvement with ‘Star Wars’. While he is not presently attached to any Lucasfilm project, he was approached in the past about the possibility, though his schedule prevented him from getting taking on a ‘Star Wars’ film at that time. But it seems that Bird has an open door at Lucasfilm, should inspiration strike. As the director explained:

“Well, I’ve known Kathy Kennedy. And I’ve known George [Lucas] quite a while too. And certainly, that’s a very fun universe and if I could think of something that would be perfect for that I would give Kathy a call, absolutely. They’ve sort of said that if I have any notion that would fit in that universe to please contract them. I mean, I saw Kathy a week ago ’cause they were mixing ‘Solo’ down the hall from us up here. So I wouldn’t rule that out. But I also have a lot of other ideas I’m very anxious to do.”

While Bird is best known for directing animation, he has done live action work as well, demonstrating that he is more than capable of excelling at either style of filmmaking. Should he journey to a galaxy far, far away, his sheer versatility as a storyteller should make for a very interesting ‘Star Wars’ story, whatever form in might ultimately take.

What sort of ‘Star Wars’ story would you like to see Brad Bird tackle? Are there any other filmmakers you’d like to see given a shot at shaping the future of the franchise? Let us know in the comments and be sure to check back with ScienceFiction.com for more on upcoming ‘Star Wars’ film and television projects as it becomes available!