Cruise, Spielberg Race Clock for Minority Report

January 18 -- We've heard this one before, but now it seems that the dynamic duo of Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise will finally get cracking on the long-delayed Minority Report. The sci-fi thriller was originally supposed to start rolling in fall 1999 for a summer 2000 release date, but it has been continually pushed back.

Now, the looming actors' and writers' strikes are reportedly providing enough impetus to get the high-powered actor-director team on the same set at the same time. Cruise must first finish his work on Cameron Crowe's Vanilla Sky, take a two-week breather, and then head back into the studio with Spielberg in early March.

For his part, the Oscar-winning director is working on what Variety calls an "impossible" editing schedule to finish A.I., another long-in-the-works film that was the unrealized last project of Stanley Kubrick.

Hot actor of the moment and Tigerland hunk Colin Farrell, who's perhaps benefited the most from Hollywood's current rush to beat the possible strikes, has been mentioned to co-star as Cruise's brother, a role once thought to go to Matt Damon. The Irish import has already snagged roles from Edward Norton (Hart's War) and Jim Carrey (Phone Booth).