So apparently there's two sequels to The Chronicles of Riddick in the works. I love the Riddick character and I loved Pitch Black; by far it's my favorite Vin Diesel character and one of his best performances. The problem is Chronicles was a very uneven movie. The opening scene and the prison planet escape were exceptional, but the Necromonger/Underverse storyline was a little too cheesy. I'd love to see more Riddick adventures, but the idea of going to "Underverse" doesn't sound very encouraging...never mind that I figured the Underverse was a fictional place and a means to control converts. Perhaps a better way to advance his character is to have him search for his homeworld, or to seek out surviving Furions. Just a thought. Pitch Black was great because of it's simplicity and that's where Chronicles both succeeded and failed. And never mind that they didn't think this franchise through in terms of titles....you got Chronicles of Riddick: Pitch Black (which was renamed to this after Chronicles and Butcher Bay came out), Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay, Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury and then just Chronicles of Riddick: ______ . The lack of an actual title has always bugged me. http://www.aintitcool.com/node/38079
Obviously, Vin Diesel, star of the first 2 movies wants to make more, but the studios responible for the first 2 have no interest.
Pitch Black was made for a very modest $23 million and grossed 39 million in the US alone. Chronicles' budget exploded to 110 million and barely surpassed that in its worldwide gross...but it still made its money back. If they keep the story simple and do more with less like in the first film, it could make some money...but of course Vin Diesel wants an epic. Besides...there have been far riskier sequels and films put into production.
I liked both of these movies. They didn't have the "epic" feel that the Star Wars franchise carried...but I did dig them as sci-fi flicks go. The Riddick character played well into Vin Diesel's acting abilities. Not sure where the sequels would go...Riddick didn't seem to care that the Depeche Mode looking Necromonger/Furion was actually a Furion also. I don't think he'll go searching for others. Of course he is a wanted man...so the storylines might evolve from someone trying to hunt him down again. Who knows? I'll probably bite if a new one is released.
As stated before, I'm glad this is coming to fruition. The studio has released a semi-formal description of the plot and Vin has posted some pics from on set. Also glad to see the Vaako character return...but would've liked to see Toombs return as one of the mercs. Here's one of the releases...(probably from some time in January or February) “Universal Pictures, One Race Films and Radar Pictures announced today that principal photography has begun on the action-driven, sci-fi thriller Riddick. The shoot will take place in Montreal. 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. Riddick also sees the return of Karl Urban (Star Trek, The Bourne Supremacy) as Vaako and introduces to the series Jordi Molla (Bad Boys II, Colombiana) 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 (upcoming 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 (TV’s Aliens in America) and two-time Grammy Award-nominated singer Keri Hilson. The film is produced by Vin Diesel (upcoming Fast & Furious 6, Fast Five) and executive produced by Samantha Vincent (Fast Five, Fast & Furious) for One Race Films. Ted Field (The Last Samurai, Pitch Black) produces for Radar Pictures, while Mike Drake (Dream House, A Nightmare on Elm Street) also executive produces. Twohy is joined on the film by a talented behind-the-scenes team, including director of photography David Eggby (Pitch Black, Mad Max), production designer Joseph Nemec III (A Perfect Getaway, The Hills Have Eyes, Terminator 2: Judgment Day) and editor Tracy Hall (Limitless, A Perfect Getaway, The Flock). The Riddick franchise has also produced two popular video games: The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena and The Chronicles of Riddick: Escape from Butcher Bay. As well, Universal Studios Home Entertainment has released the anime DVD The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury. Riddick, which is shooting in Montreal, Canada, is a One Race Films production. The film will be released by Universal Pictures in the U.S., and Lionsgate is handling international sales.”
Dude needs to get back in shape if he hasn't already. He was looking pretty bloated in the last couple of F&F movies. Riddick can't have a potbelly.
Funny that you should mention that. I thought the same thing. In particular under the chin. I really enjoyed Pitch Black and felt Chronicles of Riddick was kind of ho hum. This newer movie sounds more along the lines of Pitch Black so I like where it is headed.
I really enjoy Pitch Black(except for the disappointing ending) and The Chronicles of Riddick(kickass action). I think this one is going back to the low budget Pitch Black style because of the R rating but hopefully it will be good.
What made Pitch Black great to me was the simplicity the AWESOME use of harsh light then darkness They didn't over think it. . . . The second one was just a ridiculous story to begin with. Rocket River
Took you 3 1/2 years! The story sounds pretty good, but a little similar to the first with being stranded on a lifeless planet except for bloodthirsty alien monsters. Just don't talk about the Underverse and Necromongers and all that stupid stuff.
What made Pitch Black successful was not the Riddick character per se but their surroundings. I honestly thought Pitch Black was made by the character of the planet and its creatures...not by the Riddick character (even though he was the savior). So, naturally I thought a sequel would still involve the planet and its creatures or something along those lines...not Riddick going into a bad follow-up movie focused solely on him. And, it seems they are going back to the planet and its creatures...but it reads like it is a different planet. They strayed too much away from the formula from the original that made it successful imo. And, now they seem to have caught on to that and are coming back to it. The question is can they make it as interesting as the first one without it feeling like a retread of what they already did.
Maybe so. The budget was low on the first one. The second budget was huge. I believe IMDB said the budget for the third was only $38 million. I wasn't disappointed with the second one. I really liked the Necromonger approach and the mystery and darkness that enveloped those guys. Hopefully they'll being some of those elements over to the third. (Which I'm guessing they will...Karl Urban is back as Vaako.)
