On Thursday, word started bubbling about a new feature -- Great Hope Springs -- which had a pretty apt title for the feelings this project should elicit. Written by TV writer Vanessa Taylor, the project is close to closing deals that will have Meryl Streep and Jeff Bridges come together as a couple unsure about their 30-year marriage. Instead of the It's Complicated route with jerky exes and romantic triangles, the pair "attend an intense counseling session over a weekend in order to decide the fate of their marriage."

At first, it was getting a killer third party -- Philip Seymour Hoffman -- as the doctor. However, word has it there are scheduling issues that have the cast down one doc. However, there's a bright side. They might be up one hell of a director.

As deal-making on the feature continues, The Wrap has learned that Mike Nichols has begun talks to helm the feature. Right now, it's an unconfirmed bit of news from "an individual familiar with the project," and representatives for the main players wouldn't confirm the negotiations. This is, of course, understandable as talks continue. Only days ago, Jessie Nelson was linked to the job. While she's been writing over the last decade -- films like Because I Said So and Fred Claus -- you might remember her last directorial stab, the 2001 drama I Am Sam.

While I'd love to see a two-woman team behind the scenes crafting a great film with Streep and Bridges, Nichols has a wonderful talent for making sentimentality grounded and honest, rather than sweetly saccharine, and I'd just love to see what he does with this duo. Of course, he has worked with Streep on a number of occasions in the past, but along with Bridges, this should open up a whole new world.

Now for the doctor. Would it be wrong to hope for a reunion with Dustin Hoffman?