Vin Diesel Teases New 'Riddick' Film, But Can He Refresh Another Franchise?
Because an actor cannot exist in one franchise alone; Vin Diesel is happy to share some early Riddick content with his fans, in the form of a three-frame storyboard.
For those who might have forgotten: Vin Diesel got his big break back in 2000 with a pretty excellent sci-fi flick called Pitch Black, about a convict named Richard B. Riddick who crashed with several other passengers on a convoy ship. He can see in the dark thanks to a prison surgery, which helps this vicious convict navigate a planet filled with nocturnal monsters hell-bent on eating the survivors and himself.
Spun off into two sequels, a video game, and an animated film, Riddick has been a passion project for the Fast and Furious actor - A gig that might only have a couple more films left in the tank.
The new Riddick project is titled Riddick 4: Furya, and is being written by the original scribe and director of the series, David N. Twohy. According to Comicbook.com the synopsis is as follows:
"Betrayed by his own kind and left for dead on a desolate planet, Riddick fights for survival against alien predators and becomes more powerful and dangerous than ever before. Soon, bounty hunters from throughout the galaxy descend on Riddick, only to find themselves pawns in his greater scheme for revenge.
"With his enemies right where he wants them, Riddick unleashes a vicious attack of vengeance before returning to Furya to save it from destruction."
To be honest, as a fan of the franchise: this is a mixture of exactly what we want and, sadly, more of the same.
Yes, Riddick is a badass convict who does better as a character when he is on the run from the law, unlike when he was made into a Conan-type leader in the over-budgeted sequel The Chronicles of Riddick, which, in retrospect, wasn't the worst movie in the franchise.
That honor goes to the third installment, that went back to its lesser-bankrolled, gritty attempt at getting back to the root of the character. It tried hard and only gave a lackluster performance at best due to cheap visual effects and piss poor pacing.
But, time and nostalgia might prevail if Vin can learn from his successes with his present franchise. Do what is best for the tone you need to achieve. With Riddick, make it less about the character and more about his actions, and it will work.
That just comes down to Diesel getting out of his own way.
