# Riddick (film)
**Riddick** is a 2013 American science fiction action film written and directed by David Twohy, starring [Vin Diesel](https://www.edgepedia.org/vin-diesel) as [Richard B. Riddick](https://www.edgepedia.org/riddick-character), the outlaw antihero he has played since *Pitch Black* (2000). It is the third feature in the Chronicles of Riddick series, following *[Pitch Black](https://www.edgepedia.org/pitch-black-film)* and *The Chronicles of Riddick* (2004), and it deliberately returns the franchise to the smaller-scale, planet-bound survival format of the first film.[1](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/riddick-2013) • [2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | September 6, 2013, in US theaters and IMAX; September 4, 2013 in the United Kingdom[3](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/universal-pictures-presents-the-world-premiere-of-riddick-220232271.html) • [4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1411250/) |
| Director/writer | David Twohy, who wrote and directed the film[1](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/riddick-2013) |
| Budget | $38,000,000, down from the $105–120 million of *The Chronicles of Riddick*[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1411250/) • [2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick) |
| Box office | $42,025,135 domestic, $98,337,295 worldwide[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1411250/) |
| Critical scores | 58% Tomatometer from 172 reviews; 56% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/riddick) |
| Rating and runtime | R (strong violence, language, some sexual content/nudity); 119 minutes[6](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69654) |
| Principal cast | Vin Diesel (Riddick), Jordi Mollà (Santana), Matt Nable (Boss Johns), Katee Sackhoff (Dahl), Dave Bautista (Diaz), Karl Urban[6](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69654) • [7](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/riddick) |
## Spoilers
### Premise
The film opens with Riddick betrayed and left for dead on a sun-scorched planet that appears lifeless. He survives against alien predators described as more lethal than any human he has encountered, including water-dwelling creatures that stay confined to mudholes in dry periods and emerge in large numbers when rain comes.[7](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/riddick) • [2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick)
His only way off the planet is to activate an emergency beacon, which draws two ships of mercenaries hunting the bounty on his head: one carrying an especially violent group led by Santana, the other led by Boss Johns, the father of a bounty hunter killed in *Pitch Black*. With a deadly storm approaching that no one could survive, Riddick realizes neither group will leave without his head as a trophy.[7](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/riddick) • [2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick) The Science Fiction Encyclopedia summarizes the setup as a knowing recycling of the *Pitch Black* plot, with the squabbling hunters left exposed to the creatures in the first rainstorm.[2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick)
### Place in the franchise
The three theatrical films occupy distinct registers: *Pitch Black* (2000) is survival horror made for $23 million, *The Chronicles of Riddick* (2004) is an ambitious space opera, and *Riddick* returns to the survival roots of the first film.[8](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Riddick?pubDate=20250704) • [2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick) The Science Fiction Encyclopedia judges the reversal of the franchise's escalation in ambition to leave the film feeling like a placeholder in the series, deferring the interstellar arc; its Director's Cut adds Necromonger sequences at the beginning and end, including a sequel-tease promising a journey into the Underverse dimension.[2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick)
Commercially, the film restored the franchise to modest profitability: its $38 million budget yielded $98.3 million worldwide, a better return on budget than either predecessor, though its $42.0 million domestic gross trailed *Chronicles*' $57.7 million.[4](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1411250/) • [2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick) • [8](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Riddick?pubDate=20250704)
A fourth film, *Riddick: Furya*, began filming in 2024, with Diesel returning.[12](https://as.com/meristation/cine/el-fracaso-legendario-de-ciencia-ficcion-que-se-estreno-hace-21-anos-que-sobrevive-hasta-hoy-gracias-a-su-actor-principal-n/)
## Production and financing
**A back-to-roots sequel.** After the commercial failure of the 2004 space opera *The Chronicles of Riddick*, which cost $105–120 million against a $107.2 million worldwide gross, Vin Diesel used his standing in the Fast and Furious franchise to purchase the rights to the series and finance this third installment independently, at a greatly reduced budget.[2](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick) • [8](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Riddick?pubDate=20250704) The production companies were One Race Films and Radar Pictures in association with [Universal Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-pictures), with Diesel and Ted Field producing.[6](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69654)
Universal released the film on Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD, and Digital HD on January 14, 2014, in both theatrical and Unrated Director's Cut editions.[9](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/from-universal-studios-home-entertainment-riddick-231566601.html)
## Reception
Rotten Tomatoes recorded a 58% Tomatometer from 172 reviews and a 56% audience score from more than 50,000 ratings, with the critics consensus calling it a back-to-basics outing that may not win the franchise new converts but gives fans more of the brooding sci-fi action they expect.[5](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/riddick) Reviewers were divided along consistent lines. Variety's Scott Foundas called it an improbable but very enjoyable sequel that recaptures much of the stripped-down intensity of *Pitch Black*, and Manohla Dargis in The New York Times praised its spare voice-over, barren landscape, and tight action.[10](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/riddick/critic-reviews/) Others found the script weak: critics cited bad dialogue and generic plotting, and one Film.com review called it a fractured skeleton of a script.[11](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/Critics-Consensus-Riddick-is-Decent-Action-Fare/) • [10](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/riddick/critic-reviews/) Odie Henderson's RogerEbert.com review noted that the film restores the R rating the PG-13 *Chronicles* had dropped, overcompensating with gory mayhem, and singled out Riddick's CGI hyena-dog companion as one of the best creatures in sci-fi in decades.[1](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/riddick-2013)
## References
1. [Riddick movie review & film summary, RogerEbert.com (Odie Henderson, 2013)](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/riddick-2013)
2. [Riddick, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/riddick)
3. [Universal Pictures Presents the World Premiere of Riddick, PR Newswire (2013)](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/universal-pictures-presents-the-world-premiere-of-riddick-220232271.html)
4. [Riddick (2013), Box Office Mojo](https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt1411250/)
5. [Riddick, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/riddick)
6. [Riddick (2013), AFI Catalog](https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/69654)
7. [Riddick, Universal Pictures At Home](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/riddick)
8. [Riddick Franchise Box Office History, The Numbers](https://www.the-numbers.com/movies/franchise/Riddick?pubDate=20250704)
9. [From Universal Studios Home Entertainment: Riddick, PR Newswire (2013)](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/from-universal-studios-home-entertainment-riddick-231566601.html)
10. [Riddick critic reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/riddick/critic-reviews/)
11. [Critics Consensus: Riddick is Decent Action Fare, Rotten Tomatoes editorial (2013)](https://editorial.rottentomatoes.com/article/Critics-Consensus-Riddick-is-Decent-Action-Fare/)
12. [El fracaso legendario de ciencia ficción..., MeriStation/AS (2025)](https://as.com/meristation/cine/el-fracaso-legendario-de-ciencia-ficcion-que-se-estreno-hace-21-anos-que-sobrevive-hasta-hoy-gracias-a-su-actor-principal-n/)
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