After helming the 1995 TV movie The Good Old Boys, Tommy Lee Jones took a decade off from behind-the-camera duty, before returning to the director’s chair for the well-received The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada. Since then, Jones has been mostly defined by his soulful on-screen work in both In the Valley of Elah and No Country for Old Men, but it looks as if the directing bug has caught fire once again — after overseeing HBO Films’ recent The Sunset Limited, the actor is lining up The Homesman, a road-picture period piece. [ShowBlitz]

Jones‘s duties, furthermore, will extend far beyond the realm of directing — not only is the film based on his screenplay, but he’s also signed on to produce and star in the film as well. The story will track “a pioneer woman and a claim-jumping rascal of a man (Jones) who usher three insane women on an odyssey from Nebraska to Iowa.”

As far as the rest of 2012 is concerned, Jones will be seen rather soon in Men in Black III, which drops on May 25th. He’s also starring alongside Meryl Streep in Hope Springs — watch the recently-debuted trailer here — and playing one of the myriad supporting roles in Steven Spielberg‘s long-awaited Lincoln. Beyond that, though, Jones‘ forthcoming slate is mostly clean, ensuring that he’ll be able to put every ounce of himself into The Homesman.

What are your thoughts on Jones’ previous directing work?