What does action movie star Vin Diesel have planned for the world of The Chronicles of Riddick? With his other major franchise, The Fast and Furious, reportedly set to end with the upcoming 11th outing, Diesel has now teased big plans for the future of the Riddick franchise, taking to social media to share an image of himself as Richard B. Riddick alongside the caption…
“The Riddick universe is expanding… so cool. Inspired.”
Now, it’s not entirely clear what Diesel is referring to here, but with modern blockbuster moviemaking now dominated by sequels, prequels, and shared universes, it is certainly possible (even likely) that the Fast and Furious lead is planning to expand the world of Riddick with further installments and spin-off projects. After all, as fans of Riddick will know, there is plenty of lore still to be mined in the name of a “Riddick Cinematic Universe.”
First introduced back in 2000’s Pitch Black, Riddick remains one of Diesel’s most beloved characters. Starting life as a former soldier and mercenary-turned-infamous galactic criminal and fugitive, Richard B. Riddick possesses eyes that can see in the dark…which comes in handy when he finds himself part of the crew of a crashed spaceship being hunted by nocturnal monsters. Pitch Black and Vin Diesel’s Riddick in particular, were met with rave reviews, leading to the release of the sequel The Chronicles of Riddick in 2004. Vastly expanding the lore compared to its predecessor, the follow-up finds Riddick battling an empire hellbent on obliterating humanity known as the Necromongers.
Vin Diesel Is Now Filming Riddick 4
The last audiences saw of Riddick was in 2013’s Riddick, which took the series back to its roots to tell another smaller, more insular tale as the character finds himself once again stranded on a merciless planet and evading a lethal group of mercenaries. Ever since, fans have been awaiting a fourth outing. And it’s now filming.
Diesel recently took to social media to share several images from the set of Riddick 4, which will be titled Riddick: Furya. Set to be written and directed once again by Pitch Black’s David Twohy, the sci-fi action sequel will find Diesel back as the iconic character. Other casting details currently remain unknown, but a synopsis for Riddick: Furya does reveal clues regarding the plot:
“Riddick finally returns to his home world, a place he barely remembers and one he fears might be left in ruins. But there he finds other Furyans fighting for their existence against a new monster. And some of these Furyans are more like Riddick than he could have ever imagined.”
Riddick: Furya will delve deeper into the mysterious characters origins, with Twohy having previously revealed that the fourth installment “will see a return to Riddick’s homeworld, where we finally get to explore Riddick’s genesis.” For now, we have no idea what exactly Diesel means when he says the Riddick universe is “expanding,” but no doubt audiences would love to see the action star continue as the character beyond Riddick: Furya while further exploring the 28th century.
Riddick: Furya
has not yet been given a release date.