The word is that producer J.J. Abrams and star/producer Tom Cruise have met with the directors of those three films as possible candidate to helm IMF agent Ethan Hunt's next big screen adventure. THR's Heat Vision Blog broke the news, putting much of the shock value on "Incredibles" helmer Brad Bird, as this would be his first non-animated effort. And while Bird is certainly an odd man out compared to the other two possibilities, all three are compelling choices.

Bird previously wrote and directed "The Incredibles" and "Ratatouille" for Pixar, as well as "The Iron Giant" for Warner Bros Animation. He also served as an executive consultant for "The Simpsons" through the series' first eight years on TV and wrote the classic 1987 family flick, "*batteries not includes." He's also been working on getting a live-action adaptation of James Dalessandro's book "1906" off the ground for some time. The "M:I4" gig could certainly serve to give that other project some legs.

He could certainly be viewed as the longshot of the trio, what with his lack of live-action directing experience. I'm not so sure though. "The Incredibles" stands as proof that Bird knows how to stage compelling action. Animation-heavy background aside, his track record is impeccable. If he lands the gig, it would be a great loss for Pixar. Then again, they've still got the likes of Pete Docter and Lee Unkrich to make the magic happen.

Edgar Wright is younger than Bird, but his experience might more closely suit what the "M:I4" team is looking for. Wright director the popular UK TV series "Spaced" and he made quite a name for himself here in the States with the 2004 zombie comedy "Shaun of the Dead." He followed that up in 2007 with "Hot Fuzz," a genre-defying play on the buddy cop action/comedy, and he has a big-ticket blockbuster coming this summer with the comic book adaptation "Scott Pilgrim Vs. the World." He also happens to have a pretty busy schedule for the next couple years, with horror/comedy "Them" and Marvel Comics adaptation "Ant-Man" both on his plate, for 2011 and 2012, respectively.

Then there's Ruben Fleischer, who made a big splash last year with his aptly titled zombie comedy, "Zombieland," his feature debut. You can't really say the movie was underrated -- it more than tripled its budget at the box office -- but it was notably overlooked during awards season, when the popular -- but, in my own opinion, not as strong -- summer comedy "The Hangover" had everybody's attention.

Fleischer is a wild card. "Zombieland" was fantastic, but much of the credit there goes to the writers. The action in that movie is mostly restricted to mowing down legions of shambling corpses with a variety of weapons. It's hard to say how he'd fare with the faster pace in a "Mission: Impossible" flick, where it's human-on-human combat.

Then again, maybe we're missing the subtext here. Perhaps Wright and Fleischer being in the running is an indication that the big bad in "M:I4" will be... zombies! No no no, that's ridiculous. I already cast my vote for the "M:I4" villain: Cruise himself!

We should also remember that just because these three names came up, it doesn't mean they're the only ones being talked to. With Paramount planning a May 27, 2011 release for the film, we can expect details like this to firm up soon.

What do you think of these three possibilities? Any other directors you'd like to see take the reins?