I just recently moved into a home that had a mirror over the fireplace. When I removed the mirror, I discovered half of the area covered by the morror did not have drywall behind it. Instead, part of the fireplace brick (approximately 2ft by 5ft) is exposed. I would like to cover the brick exposed space with drywall. I'm concerned about inserting screws, nails or plugs into the brick or mortar. What is the best way to tackle this problem?

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Is there drywall surrounding this area and if so how is it attached. More description would be heplful.

There is drywall on the outer edge where the mirror was placed. I guess the other problem is that the surrounding drywall is level with the brick. This poses a problem because laying a new piece of drywall would not be level since it would be directly on top of the brick. There is also approximately 2 inches of fiberglass insulation between the brick and drywall. Finally, there is 2x4 wood running under the edge of the drywall. I thought I might be able to put screws into the drywall and 2x4 at an angle. I hope this help to give a better understanding of my problem.

Is this 2' high and 5' wide or 5' high or 2' wide. Sounds like someone famed out walls flush with front surface of chimney. Does the chiminey project from wallls. Can you post pictures.

The space that is exposing the brick is 5 ft wide (horizontal) and 2ft long (vertical). The exposed brick is flush with the wall. The fireplace wall and the rest of the wall going out to the window on both sides are blend together, meaning they are like one flat wall surface. Since the brick is also flush to the existing drywall, placing another piece of drywall over the brick will make it stick 1/2 inch ( the thickness of the new drywall).
I don't have a picture to show.
My thoughts on trying to correct the problem is to frame out the fireplace with 2x4s to build a new design on it. Then drywall the whole area and tile the hearth and surround. I just don't want to go through all that work if there was an easier solution.

From what I picture here is what I think I would do. It does not sound very professional but it should work. Hopefully the brick are indeed flush hopefully slightly recessed.

Get a bucket of dry mud (joint compound), a 6" joint knife, a pan and a roll of paper tape. Plaster over the brick with the mud, strike it off flat with a 3' straight edge (3' level).
Cover the entire area with drywall tape. Let dry a couple days and apply another thin coat of mud. Let dry and sand. If necessary keep applying thin coats of mud and sanding. If necessary fill in gaps between the chimney and framing with non combustible product like insulation foam so mud will have something to adhere to until it's dry. The paper tape is necessary to keep the mud from cracking. You may have a slight hump in the wall but if edges are feathered out properly you will never know it. Apply a thin coat to existing drywall and let tape overlap joint. Lots of sanding, lots of dust, hand sand. Power sanding will create way too much dust.