Brad Bird is a name that animation fans have come to trust over the years, from The Iron Giant to The Incredibles, to the upcoming Ratatouille, he knows how to tell a story within the medium that goes beyond idle entertainment for kids. But will his fans follow him into the live action arena? According to a recent interview in The Daily Bulletin, that’s where he’s heading next… and he’s bringing Pixar with him. He had actually been planning on doing a live action film after The Incredibles, but John Lasseter begged him to help turn around the stalled Ratatouille project. He agreed to take over if he could rewrite the script himself.

There seems to be an unusual lack of excitement for Ratatouille, especially when you consider that Pixar’s supporters are usually very vocal. However, Bird promises that moviegoers will not be disappointed: “About one minute into this movie, people are going to see it’s not only different from all those other movies, but different from anything that Pixar has ever done… It feels as close to classic, old Walt Disney-era movies as you’re ever going to get.” I do tend to think that Bird has something special up his sleeve, even if the trailers have been somewhat uninspiring. He has also confirmed that his next movie will indeed be that live action project he’s been waiting to sink his teeth into. All signs indicate it will be the long-awaited John Carter of Mars project that such directors as Robert Rodriguez, Kerry Conran and Jon Favreau had been previously attached to. I don’t know much about the story, but I know it’s an old pulp sci-fi adventure, and the movie may actually combine animation with live action. Bird should be an ideal choice, and I can’t wait to see what happens on that front. In the meantime, we still have to get through Ratatouille, which I’m hoping will be a pleasant surprise. You can currently watch the first 9 minutes over at Disney.com.

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