Brad Bird just ended hopes for Ratatouille 2

Pixar's churned out more than a few gems, but if you ask me, Ratatouille still stands head and shoulders above most of them. You remember the premise: a rat, Remy (voiced by Patton Oswalt), has his heart set on becoming a proper chef in Paris. He ends up teaming up with Linguini (Lou Romano), the bumbling garbage boy at Auguste Gusteau's restaurant, and together they basically take over the kitchen—mostly beneath everyone's noses. It's part love letter to French cuisine, part madcap rodent adventure, and it hasn't aged a day. Hard to believe it's pushing 20 years old now, but here we are.

No, You're Not Getting Ratatouille 2 (And You Probably Never Will)

Despite the fact that Pixar is very keen on mining its own legacy for sequels—Toy Story 5 and Inside Out 2, anyone?—writer-director Brad Bird isn't biting when it comes to making Ratatouille 2. Collider asked him straight up if he'd be interested in a sequel, and his answer could not have been more clear:

'No. I don't. They've made little feints towards that to see how I would react. They'll, like, crack a joke, but the joke will be a little bit serious, like, "Would you?" And I'm like, "No, we told that story." Any time you do something that ends up connecting with people, they automatically think, "How about another?" People have mentioned it about The Iron Giant, which is hilarious to me because the film didn't succeed at all in its initial release. It's caught up in time, but what would you do to follow that up? He's lumbering around, still undiscovered? In other words, to me, that story is told.'

I mean, you can't really fault his logic. Plenty of Pixar sequels are fun enough, but there is something to be said for just letting a story end when it's supposed to. Could Ratatouille 2 make stacks of cash? No doubt. Does it actually need to exist? According to Bird—and honestly, I agree—it absolutely does not.

What's Next for Brad Bird? Ray Gunn Finally Gets Its Moment

Instead of rehashing old stories, Brad Bird is finally rolling out a project that's been in his head for decades: Ray Gunn. If you like your animation weird, pulpy, and just a touch bonkers, this is right up your street. Bird dreamt it up way back in the '90s, but it went on ice when he got busy with The Iron Giant.

• Setting: Metropia, a vast metropolis in a retro-futuristic alternate 1939
• Main character: Raymond Gunn, private investigator
• Plot: Gunn is drawn into a twisted case full of murder, aliens, and a big-name star called Venus Nova
• Cast:
  • Sam Rockwell as Ray Gunn
  • Scarlett Johansson as Venus Nova
  • Tom Waits as Eyera, Ray's loyal one-eyed alien mate
  • Release date: It's on Netflix from 18 December

  In Bird's own words: 'RAY GUNN has been in my mind for over 30 years. The film is a blend of sci-fi and classic detective movies from the '40s… it's Maltese Falcon meets Buck Rogers. I've been a fan of both of those sort of genres, and blending them together seemed fun, and a chance to play with a lot of very cinematic elements, and extreme characters.'

  He's also chuffed about the chance to nudge people who 'don't watch animation' to give it a look, pointing out that the medium is far too interesting to stay boxed in by genre expectations. I'm genuinely curious if this'll break through to the crowd who still insist cartoons are just for kids.