Vin Diesel and David Twohy Chronicle the Future of Riddick

Steve Barton   |  

Aug 21, 2013

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We’re just over two weeks away from the release of Riddick, the third film in the Vin Diesel-starring franchise that began with 2000’s Pitch Black. Too soon to start talking about the future of the franchise? We think not!

SFX Magazine recently discussed that very topic with both Diesel and the film’s writer/director David Twohy, who also wrote and directed the previous two films in the franchise. They revealed that the original plan was for 2004’s Chronicles of Riddick to be the first in a trilogy of tales dealing with the mythology of the necromongers, the Underverse and Riddick’s homeworld, Furya. After the disappointing box office performance of the film, that plan was put on hold when it came time to make Riddick, but it hasn’t been completely thrown out the window.

If Riddick isn’t quite the second film in that originally planned trilogy, then what is it? Twohy explains…

“At its core [Riddick] is a survival story about one man, and his only way to get off this planet is to call in the mercenaries for a ride. That said, we don’t turn our backs on the mythology that we planted in the last movie, and we are actually bringing Karl [Urban] back for a few days of filming to advance it and lay the groundwork for movie four. We’re concerned with paying off the loyal fans and think that if somebody doesn’t understand something, the solution is to look at the other two movies and get up-to-speed. It does play in a gratifying way as a standalone movie, but there are threads that we continue to sew that we started in previous movies and will continue in future movies.”

Vin Diesel also revealed details about the future of the franchise, confirming that post-Riddick installments will take audiences into the Underverse and Furya, as Twohy had originally planned for Riddick to do. “Those are the two further stories that are mapped out,” said Diesel.

Sounds to me like Riddick is at its core an attempt to get the franchise back on track so that Twohy can continue on with telling the stories he planned on telling after Chronicles. Here’s hoping it fares better at the box office than Richard B. Riddick’s last outing so he can carry out those plans!

Look for Riddick in theatres on September 6, 2013.

Joining Diesel are a returning Karl Urban (Star Trek) as Vaako; Jordi Molla as Santana, the arrogant captain of the mercenary ship; Matt Nable (Killer Elite) as Boss Johns, a man looking for answers; Katee Sackhoff (TV’s “Battlestar Galactica”) as the Nordic mercenary Dahl; and Bokeem Woodbine (Total Recall) as bounty hunter Moss. Rounding out the cast are Dave Bautista (The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption), Conrad Pla (Immortals), Raoul Trujillo (Apocalypto), Nolan Funk (Aliens in America), and two-time Grammy Award-nominated singer Keri Hilson.

Synopsis:
Riddick, the latest chapter of the groundbreaking saga that began with 2000’s hit sci-fi film Pitch Black and 2004’s The Chronicles of Riddick reunites writer/director David Twohy (A Perfect Getaway, The Fugitive) and star Vin Diesel (the Fast and Furious franchise, xXx). Diesel reprises his role as the antihero Riddick, a dangerous, escaped convict wanted by every bounty hunter in the known galaxy.

The infamous Riddick has been left for dead on a sun-scorched planet that appears to be lifeless. Soon, however, he finds himself fighting for survival against alien predators more lethal than any human he’s encountered. The only way off is for Riddick to activate an emergency beacon and alert mercenaries who rapidly descend to the planet in search of their bounty.

The first ship to arrive carries a new breed of merc, more lethal and violent, while the second is captained by a man whose pursuit of Riddick is more personal. With time running out and a storm on the horizon that no one could survive, his hunters won’t leave the planet without Riddick’s head as their trophy.