Alert! Contains spoilers for new viewers of The Riddick movies.
Although Vin Diesel is more popularly associated with The Fast and the Furious, the Riddick movies were his first franchise films. If there’s one thing movie audiences can’t take away from Vin Diesel, it has to be his ability to pick roles in highly successful sci-fi/action films. And if nothing else, Vin Diesel has no problem being cast in antihero roles.
With the three live-action Riddick movies now on Netflix, there’s no better time to catch up on the franchise. As movie audiences await Fast X in May 2023 and the winding down of The Fast and the Furious franchise, all eyes turn to the promised fourth film in the Riddick franchise. The Riddick franchise consists of three live-action movies and several franchise offshoots. Knowing the best order to watch the movies will help better understand the franchise canon.
The Best Order To Watch The Riddick Movies
The best order to watch The Riddick movies is to do so chronologically. Excluding the video games, short films, and motion comics created as prequels and sequels, watching the movies in the order they were made and released gives viewers a better appreciation of the franchise canon. The best way to get started on Netflix is with Pitch Black (2000).
Pitch Black was released on February 18, 2000, and follows the story of its main character, Richard B. Riddick (Vin Diesel). Riddick is aboard the spaceship Hunter-Gratzner as a prisoner being transported to prison. When micrometeoroids hit the ship, it is forced to land on a supposedly empty planet. When they discover they’re not alone, the surviving crew and passengers ally with Riddick to survive the planet’s predatory creatures.
The next movie to watch is The Chronicles of Riddick (2004). The Chronicles of Riddick, released on June 11, 2004, is a direct live-action sequel to Pitch Black. The movie is set about five years after the events in Pitch Black. In the five years, Riddick has been hiding from mercenaries and bounty hunters. Riddick teams up with two of the spaceship survivors to stop an invading empire, the Necromongers, led by Lord Marshal.
The last live-action movie to catch up on Netflix is Riddick (2013). Released on September 6, 2013, the story continues with its antihero Riddick (Vin Diesel). Riddick is still the last of the Furyan race and, following his defeat of Lord Marshal, is the new Lord Marshal. However, Riddick is left for dead on a desolate planet after being betrayed by Commander Vaako. Riddick signals two mercenary ships to lure them into capturing him. He tries to convince them to work together against the planet’s predators, the Mud Demons.
When Will Riddick 4: Furya Be Set?
Riddick 4: Furya is set to be the fourth film in The Riddick franchise. After 2013 Riddick‘s moderate Box Office success, Universal Pictures decided to proceed with a fourth film. Vin Diesel confirmed the news on his Facebook page in January 2014. By July 21, 2019, Diesel confirmed through an Instagram post that he had received the script for Riddick 4: Furya from writer-director David Twohy.
While there have been no official trailers or production leaks, Vin Diesel gave clues in May 2016 about what the movie could be about. Diesel asked the franchise lovers and audiences if they would love to know where Riddick’s story began. This teases the film’s plot will be set as a prequel to its first movie, Pitch Black. As the last surviving Furyan, Riddick 4: Furya could be the film that brings the Riddick movies franchise full cycle and help fill in the gaps for its audience.
Fast X will be released on May 19, 2023
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