It seems that Brad Bird was offered the chance to direct Star Wars: Episode VII. But on this occasion, it wasn't to be...
NewsRemember, before J.J. Abrams got the job, when it was basically a daily rumor mill as to who was going to direct what we now know as Star Wars: The Force Awakens? Director after director was linked with the job, including the mighty Brad Bird, of The Iron Giant and The Incredibles vintage.
Bird is currently on the promotional trail for his latest film, Tomorrowland, and he's been quizzed about Star Wars as part of that. In Bird's case, it seems he was actually offered the chance to take Star Wars on, but had to turn the job down. There was actually substance to the rumor in this instance.
Chatting to Yahoo, he said that "it absolutely was [a tough decision]" to pass on Star Wars. "But there was no way to do that film without junking this film, and we had already gotten George Clooney involved and I was excited about this film."
He added that "I understand that they had to get [Episode VII] made, and they would've had to push it in order for me to do it." And that was not going to happen.
Given his commitment to making The Incredibles 2 once Tomorrowlandis safely released, Bird's schedule isn't likely to allow much Star Wars time for a while either. Maybe one day...
