All The Riddick Movies In Chronological Order

March 17, 2023, 8:40 p.m.

Movies

All The Riddick Movies In Chronological Order

0 0

Summary The Riddick movies may not have been critically acclaimed, but they gained a loyal fanbase and became cult classics in their own right.

Each Riddick movie has its own strengths and builds a compelling world within the story's universe.

While the Riddick movies can be enjoyed as standalone adventures, they are best experienced in the order in which they were released.

The Riddick movie franchise was a major stepping stone in Vin Diesel's career, but without consistency in the titling of the three installments, their viewing order is not immediately clear. Starting in the year 2000 with the sci-fi/horror film Pitch Black, the series quickly found its star in the form of its antihero, Richard Riddick (Diesel), and the franchise continued with additional movies. Though the Riddick movies have received mixed critical reactions, the series gained a loyal fanbase and its films became cult classics in their own right.

Even if the Riddick movies weren't critical darlings, there was enough interest to keep the franchise going, with 2013's Riddick boasting modest box office success, greenlighting a fourth film, the upcoming Riddick 4: Furya. Every Riddick movie has its own strengths, and the series has the uncanny ability to build a compelling world within the universe of the story. The extraneous media and short films helped to further flesh out that world-building, but the features are essential viewing. The Riddick movies can be enjoyed as standalone adventures, but they are best experienced in the order in which they were released.

Related Riddick: Furya - Cast, Story & Everything We Know Vin Diesel is returning for Riddick: Furya. Here's what we know about the sequel's development status, story details, and potential release date.

Pitch Black (2000)

The Humble Sci-Fi Horror That Kickstarted A Franchise

Pitch Black Release Date February 18, 2000 Director David Twohy Cast Claudia Black , Vin Diesel , Keith David , Cole Hauser , Radha Mitchell Runtime 109 minutes

The 2000 sleeper hit Pitch Black is set in the distant future and follows the passengers aboard the Hunter-Gratzner, which crash-lands on a mysterious planet. While the initial concern is that the convict they are transporting, Riddick, has escaped, the survivors soon discover that the planet they are on becomes the hunting ground for monsters when the sun sets.

Unlike the other Riddick movies' more action-oriented slant, Pitch Black plays up the horror elements of its plot for a moderately scary result. Though Diesel wasn't the original choice for Pitch Black's Riddick, he turned out a star-making performance only a year before 2001's The Fast and the Furious made him a household name. Interestingly, he is not even set up as the main character, with Radha Mitchell's Fry as the more traditional protagonist initially. However, the movie delivers a nice twist in the climax that allows Riddick to carry the franchise forward.

Pitch Black sets up several elements about the character that the franchise will elaborate on in the future. Riddick explains that his eyes, which give him the ability to see in the dark, were the result of a surgery job he received in prison. The movie also establishes the trend of bounty hunters on Riddick's trail, with Yellowstone's Cole Hauser playing the hunter William J. Johns in this movie. Pitch Black takes place over a single day on the alien planet, not moving the timeline of the series ahead too much.

Although Pitch Black was made on a modest budget of $23 million, it became a sleeper hit, grossing over $53 million worldwide (via Box Office Mojo).

The Chronicles Of Riddick (2004)

The Second Riddick Movie Significantly Expands The Lore Of Vin Diesel's Hero

The Chronicles of Riddick Where to Watch stream

rent

buy Not available Not available Not available *Availability in US Release Date June 11, 2004 Director David Twohy Cast Colm Feore , Vin Diesel , Thandie Newton , Karl Urban , judi dench Runtime 119 minutes Main Genre Action

2004's The Chronicles of Riddick catches up with the titular criminal five years after the first movie and sees him take on the Necromongers, a race bent on destroying all human life in the galaxy. The sequel elevates the action, and by equal measure, ramps up the cheesiness for an appealing popcorn movie. Diesel got a chance to show off more of his action-hero abilities, and the high-octane thriller introduced more of the universe within the Riddick movies. The Chronicles of Riddick grossed $115 million (via Box Office Mojo) but still fell short of expectations.

The sequel could work as a standalone movie as it is more about continuing the adventures of Riddick himself rather than continuing the story of Pitch Black. However, there are elements from the first movie that return in the sequel. Keith David is the only other returning cast member, reprising his role as Imam, one of the survivors from the alien planet of the first movie. The only other survivor, Jack, also returns, but with Alexa Davalos taking over the role from Rhiana Griffith.

The movie also introduces a new band of bounty hunters on Riddick's trail, led by Nick Chinlund as Toomes. However, the biggest new addition to the mythology of the movie is the introduction of the Furyan race, of which Riddick is a part. The Furyan are a race of warriors who were thought to be extinct, making Riddick more than just an average intergalactic convict. The movie unfolds over the course of several days and ends with Riddick killing the Necromongers' leader and thus taking his position.

Related Riddick's Home World Furya Explained (Why It Was Wiped Out) Vin Diesel's antihero Riddick came from a planet named Furya, which will feature in the upcoming fourth movie. There's his home planet explained.

Riddick (2013)

The Third Riddick Movie Cemented The Trilogy

The Chronicles of Riddick Where to Watch stream

rent

While Vin Diesel was making franchises with Guardians of the Galaxy and Fast & Furious, Riddick was a character he continued to hold a great deal of passion for and wanted to return to. After The Chronicles of Riddick found new life on DVD, it was eventually followed by 2013's Riddick. This installment centers on Riddick after he's left stranded on a desert planet with his only means of escape coming from a beacon that will summon his greatest enemies to kill him. After almost 10 years away from the role, Diesel returned as Riddick with absolutely no rust.

Diesel is joined in the third movie by newcomers like Katee Sackhoff and Dave Bautista, while Karl Urban is the only other returning character, reprising his role as the ambitious Necromonger, Vaako. The movie picks up five years after the events of The Chronicles of Riddick and finds Riddick as the unwilling ruler of the Necromongers. He is more interested in finding the Furyan homeworld, which leads to Vaako betraying him and leaving him on an alien planet to die.

In many ways, the movie is a return to form, telling a much simpler story akin to Pitch Black. Riddick sends out a beacon to mercenaries to find him on the planet, in the hopes of using their ships to escape. When the planet's beasts come alive, he is forced to partner with the mercenaries to survive. The movie also connects back to the original, as the mercenary Boss Johns (Matt Nable) is the father of Cole Hauser's bounty hunter.

While it's unclear exactly how much time passes over the course of the movie, there is an extended sequence of Riddick alone on this planet and healing his broken leg, which suggests it covers more time than any of the other films. Though Riddick was dismissed by critics as a generic action romp, it grossed almost $100 million (via Box Office Mojo) and ensured the Riddick movies would continue in the future.

Where Riddick 4: Furya Will Fit Into The Franchise's Chronology

The Furyan Is Returning Home In The Fourth Riddick Movie

The Riddick franchise is finally receiving another installment with the announcement that Riddick 4: Furya is in development. It’s been another 10 years since Diesel played Richard Riddick and this time, he’s returning to his homeworld, Furya, following the events of Riddick. After having mentioned his harsh planet in previous films, this will be the first time Riddick has returned and by meeting people from his past, more light will be shed on his backstory.

In the next Riddick movie, Vin Diesel's hero will also have to contend with a new enemy as he takes up the fight alongside his fellow Furyans. No release date has been announced but David Twohy, director of the previous three Riddick films, will return to the helm. Diesel also released a Riddick: Furya set video in August 2024, confirming that filming would begin soon.