Buzz
Over the past 15 years, Brad Bird has established himself as a celebrated writer and director, delivering some of the most successful box office hits. At Pixar, he helmed the acclaimed films The Incredibles (2004) and Ratatouille (2007). Later, he revitalized the Mission: Impossible series with Paramount’s 2011 blockbuster, Ghost Protocol.
However, one project has remained in development for more than two decades, despite Bird’s passion: an animated sci-fi noir called Ray Gunn.
Concept art by Sylvain Despretz. film ick
Conceived in the early 1990s alongside co-writer Matthew Robbins, the project was initially planned as a 2D animated feature for Turner Entertainment. Ray Gunn follows the tale of Earth’s final human private detective, hired to investigate claims of infidelity against a pop sensation named Venus Envy. In a world shared by humans and aliens, Gunn uncovers a plot by Envy’s manipulative husband to frame her for the murder of her body double.
Trade publications described it as a blend of Raymond Chandler’s noir and Buck Rogers’ sci-fi, with Bird envisioning a futuristic world styled after the 1930s pulp novel aesthetic. Bird once revealed that the concept was inspired by combining the B-52’s song “Planet Claire” with the vibe of the 1950s detective series Peter Gunn.
Despite Bird’s influence as a creative consultant on The Simpsons, he couldn’t convince Turner executives to approve the project. Warner Bros., which merged with Turner in 1995, showed even less enthusiasm, deeming the film potentially too dark for younger audiences.
Concept art by Sylvain Despretz. film ick
“I viewed it as a mainstream project, but Hollywood perceived it as almost avant-garde, like, ‘What is this even about?’” Bird shared with Ain’t It Cool News in 1999. “In animation, there’s always this fear of, ‘This might disturb a 5-year-old.’ My response is, ‘Then maybe the 5-year-old shouldn’t watch it. Can’t we create something different for once?’”
Bird clarified that Gunn had been misunderstood as an adult-oriented project, which wasn’t entirely accurate. “People kept claiming it was R-rated and compared it to Pulp Fiction, but while that concept has its merits—I’d definitely watch something like that—it was actually PG, or perhaps PG-13 at most,” he explained.
Although fully storyboarded and scripted, Ray Gunn was put on hold after Warner persuaded Bird to shift his focus to 1999’s The Iron Giant, inspired by Ted Hughes' 1968 novel, The Iron Man. This project eventually led him to Pixar, where he contributed to some of the studio’s most iconic successes. To this day, no other studio has shown interest in reviving Ray Gunn.
After directing 2015’s Tomorrowland, Bird hasn’t abandoned Ray Gunn entirely. He recently expressed his eagerness to return to 2D animation and stated that he remains “passionate” about the concept. “There’s a unique magic in hand-drawn animation that resonates deeply with me,” he shared on the Bancroft Brothers Animation Podcast in 2015. “I truly miss that.”
