Vin Diesel’s Riddick movies have a thing no other sci-fi franchise can match

With all three live-action Riddick movies now on Netflix, and Riddick 4 currently in the works, there’s no better time to talk about Vin Diesel’s other major franchise.

Vin Diesel became a franchise star in the 2000s when few actors had the same opportunities. Three years later, he was playing the role of the protagonist in three potential series-launchers. He played the part of the evil, mysterious Richard B. Riddick (sci-fi/horror movie). Pitch BlackDominic Toretto, the muscular-bound everydayman. The Fast and Furious; and as the nü-metal-infused James Bond archetype Xander Cage in XXX. The success of all three movies was different. XXX The sequel made a lot of money, but it was destroyed by Fast and Furious. Being one of the top-grossing TV series.

Pitch Black’s success, on the other hand, led to two sequels of varying quality and genre, with a fourth Riddick movie now in development. Plus a much-loved animation interlude. Aeon Flux director Peter Chung: 2004’s Chronicles of Riddick – Dark Fury.) But the Riddick series is by far the most interesting of Diesel’s franchises. Even though the story is at worst inconsistent, it is a unique exception in franchise storytelling. The three films’ arrival on Netflix provides a prime opportunity to look back at a trilogy that has an experimental energy no other sci-fi franchise can match. The series, driven by passion by its lead man and director, is remarkable for its unpredictability in an industry that tends to be controlled by dull regularity.

Universal Pictures

The late ’90s and early ’00s were ripe for sci-fi cinema: The Matrix, EquilibriumYou can even get mega-budget food like Star Wars Episode I – The Phantom MenaceAnd Spider-ManWhile they may vary in their tone and their scopes, there are many things in common. Mostly, they’re all deeply sincere on a conceptual level. Whether it’s the relationship between the online and real worlds of The MatrixThe goofy devotion to gun kata EquilibriumOr the comic-book emotions that are aw-shucks Spider-ManAll of these films wear their heart on their sleeves.

Pitch BlackThis is also shared, even though it seems incredibly stripped down in retrospect. It only gives the most essential details about its new world, but it establishes Riddick as a cool character who is transformed from criminal to hero throughout the film. Harkening back to films like John Carpenter’s Escape New York — stories built on simple, atmospheric narratives and awesome antiheroes — it lives and dies based on just how involved a given viewer is with the idea that Riddick fucking owns. Riddick is a true master of this film, more so than in any other. Riddick can be seen often in shadow, speaking with directness and gruffness, but thankfully not into forced monologues.

The plot works because it is reliable: A captured bad guy gets a chance to be free if he teams up with good men, so he becomes more of a good person. Escaping a downed ship and surviving a planet that’s fraught with terrifying creatures gives Diesel and director David Twohy plenty of opportunities to show off Diesel’s action-star potential. Combine this with the movie’s horror leanings (there are some nice bits of gore and suspenseful sequences, even though the film’s CGI is dated), and you have an impressive film that can be enjoyed even without the context of the sequels to follow.

These sequels are likely to cause differences in opinions about Riddick’s series. Many thanks to Pitch Black’s box office and Diesel’s increasing fame, the film was granted a follow-up, 2004’s The Chronicles of Riddick — which drops the rating to a PG-13 rather than Pitch Black’s R. Chronicles is an exercise in world-building that seems fairly needless, viewed immediately after the first film’s restraint. Twohy, his co-writers and Riddick are not content to let Riddick do the rad stuff over again. They also give an insight into the backstory and lore of Riddick. Riddick now finds himself as one of the only survivors of an ancient war race and possibly the fulfillment of a prophecy. He must also stop the Necromongers, an all-powerful cult/army that is trying to conquer the universe. Riddick travels across many planets, meeting a variety of returning and unknown characters. He transforms into a reluctant criminal who becomes a full-on superhero.

Universal Pictures

It’s an abrupt shift: In Pitch Black, the closest thing we get to consistent sci-fi motifs are some alien creatures and Riddick’s genetically altered eyes. It happened suddenly: Chronicles, he’s racing around lavish sets, being referred to with mythological reverence, and doing battle with a horde of dudes in big, plastic suits of armor. Riddick receives the obligatory franchise glow-up: Riddick speaks almost entirely now in T-shirt-ready phrases, thanks to his cruel, quirky streak. Pitch BlackTransforming into an action-figure figure.

Knowing Vin Diesel’s public love of Dungeons & Dragons and his habit of grabbing for the creative reins of his franchises, it’s no surprise that he was behind infusing Chronicles With broad fantasy elements. And the fact that it’s a passion project is likely the only reason Chronicles doesn’t descend into green-screen delirium, and maintains at least a little bit of the charm of the first film. It’s the exact opposite of most franchise trajectories, ones that leave the actors and creatives feeling like bit players in a world that they made popular, while the studios build around them.

The safest approach to franchises is to focus on the success of existing trends and not experiment with new styles, tones or genres. It’s what’s led to the Fast and the Furious films continually chasing the high of the revelatory Fast FiveDiesel’s reprisal of Xander Cage in 2017 was made possible by increasingly absurd set pieces. It’s also what made Diesel’s eventual reprisal of Xander Cage in 2017’sXXXX: The Return of Xander CaageIt feels so light. Nothing feels like it’s changed much in the 15-year gap between the first XXXThe sequel. This template was established well in advance.

That isn’t the case with 2013’s RiddickThe third movie in the series is “The Third Film”, which attempts reconciliation Pitch Black’s thorny barbarity and Chronicles’ sci-fi grandeur. Here, we see that Riddick now runs the Necromongers, a role he’s uncomfortable with. Then he agrees to move on and leave everything behind. On the way, he’s betrayed and dumped on an isolated desert planet, where he does battle with the local supernatural wildlife and eventually teams up with/murders some mercenaries.

Universal Pictures Photo

In short, it’s a pseudo-reboot of Pitch BlackHowever, it was enhanced with additional information that was discovered in Chronicles. Riddick is left alone in hostile surroundings for a longer time, which allows him to be a little more wild than his enlightened counterpart. Riddick is able to rip through enemies with ease, and not just stab at men wearing outer space shoulder pads. But the third film isn’t as visually inspired as Pitch BlackThe constant CGI is a result of the mix of grays and browns that are found in these sets.

Once again, the constant in the series is Diesel’s enthusiasm (he was willing to lose his house to fund the film), even when Riddick’s dusty machismo and plainspoken brusqueness start to feel pretty corny on the third time through. It’s hard to find another series that expanded so much, only to cut off every possible loose end in favor of a back-to-basics story. The Riddick franchise’s potential reach was certainly reduced by its chaotic box-office results. Its contemporary franchises (Star Wars, Star Wars, and Spider-Man) all saw an explosion in the amount of content to be absorbed.

With the fourth Riddick movie currently in preproduction, it’s hard to guess where Diesel’s character will end up next. The film’s proposed title, Furya 4 by RiddickThese are hints that it is possible to be next in line ChroniclesThe scope was expanded and mythos added in a modern-day fashion. The Furyans were Riddick’s warrior race, as revealed in ChroniclesFurya, Riddick’s destination at the start of his journey to America was Furya. Riddick His crewmates were the ones who made the foolish choice to kill him.

The history of this franchise means that there are many possible approaches to making the film. Which is part of what’s fun about the Riddick films. They don’t follow the typical arc for a sci-fi series, much less the arc of the other series that made Vin Diesel so prominent in the action-movie world. Instead, thanks to his input and Twohy’s, we got three films that differ wildly from one another. It’s unclear whether anyone cares as much about Riddick as Vin Diesel. However, if this means that we now have one action movie franchise in which no film has ever been as successful as the previous one, it’s great.