UPDATE: In an interview with Empire Magazine, Tom Cruise has said that Brad Bird has been confirmed as the director. Expect a studio announcement before too long.

We still haven't heard official word as to whether or not The Incredibles and Ratatouille director Brad Bird really will be directing Mission: Impossible 4 for Paramount, but at least we know the studio is still planning to make the movie. Deadline Hollywood reports that the studio has set a release date of December 16, 2011 for the film, with the note that the studio "is close" to hiring a director.

M:I 4 has been in the works for years now, and since J.J. Abrams turned down the directing job last fall (he's still on board as a producer), all kinds of names have flown about for the director's chair. At one point Zombieland's Ruben Fleischer was in the mix, but he seems to have bailed in favor of making 30 Minutes or Less, an action comedy with Danny McBride. We haven't heard any new names surface since Bird's came up at the end of March, so it seems safe to assume he's still in the running. The December 16 release date means that production will need to start soon on the effects-heavy film, so if you see Brad Bird slipping furtively into the Paramount lot sometime soon, drop us a line.