Universal has announced the release date of Riddick, the third installment of the sci-fi action series starring Vin Diesel. While the unmistakable actor has always looked enormous on screen, he’ll manage to supersize for IMAX in September.
It’s hard to believe that twelve years have passed since David Twohy‘s surprisingly good Pitch Black hit theaters. What’s even harder to believe is that someone like Judi Dench would actually star in the sequel, The Chronicles of Riddick, just four years later. While that movie did hint at an impending trilogy, nothing really came of it. Until now.
David Twohy has once again teamed up with Vin Diesel and Karl Urban, while adding the likes of Dave Bautista and Katee Sackhoff, to complete Riddick. A short log line released by Universal reads as follows.
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.
Hmmm, sounds eerily similar to Pitch Black if you ask me. However, one could easily grant that film enough pull to warrant The Chronicles of Riddick (which bombed) and whatever David Twohy can come up to round out a proper trilogy (even if it is nothing more than a rehashing). After all, people soon forget how Pitch Black created a unique universe full of grit, betrayal and even spiritual hierarchy. While Chronicles certainly didn’t capitalize on all of those aspects, it at least attempted to expand upon them.
In other words, it would be deservedly fair to give Twohy, Diesel and Co. one more shot. Anything more than that, however, would be a sacrilege. Riddick will storm theaters — for better or worse — come September. We’ll be sure to fill you in once the marketing campaign is in full swing.
