Vin Diesel’s career boasts a roster of iconic roles, such as Groot and Dominic Toretto, yet many still associate him most strongly with Richard B. Riddick. Diesel’s characters often share common traits, and Riddick is no exception. As a former convict, Riddick epitomizes a fiercely capable warrior, adept at navigating perilous interstellar predicaments. His sparse dialogue is a testament to his preference for action over words.

While the Riddick films might not have won over critics, they have carved out a niche as beloved guilty pleasures within the sci-fi genre. The series is renowned for its grandiose action sequences and its focus on a singular hero’s journey rather than intricate sci-fi world-building, although it does offer some intriguing lore for the curious viewer. To fully appreciate Riddick’s saga, watching the films in their release order is advisable.

With over two decades since its inception, the Riddick series remains accessible to newcomers, thanks to its concise lineup of just three films. Each installment features a self-contained story, making it easy for fresh audiences to dive in. The series prioritizes the exploration of Riddick’s character over developing an extensive sci-fi mythos, leaving room for more detailed exploration when the creators decide to expand the universe further.

• Pitch Black
• The Chronicles of Riddick
• Riddick

The journey begins with “Pitch Black,” released in 2000. Initially, it seems like a standalone sci-fi tale rather than the start of a series. The plot centers on a spacecraft, the Hunter-Gratzner, which crashes on an alien planet after being struck by meteors. This calamity results in the death of the captain and the escape of its perilous prisoner, Richard B. Riddick. As survivors grapple with the aftermath, they soon face a new threat: nocturnal alien predators that decimate everything in their path.

Each Riddick movie has a plot that could stand on its own, but there is an ongoing story that links all three movies together. Riddick’s journey from prisoner to cult leader to spacefaring loner makes for a wild ride, and you need to watch the movies in chronological order — which is also the release order — to fully take in that experience.

Released in 2000, “Pitch Black” is the beginning of the Riddick franchise, but the movie feels more like a one-off sci-fi adventure than the start of a series. The film follows a prisoner transport ship called the Hunter-Gratzner that gets damaged by meteorites and crash lands on an alien world. That’s just the beginning of the ship’s troubles. The chaos of the crash killed the captain and allowed its dangerous prisoner, Richard B. Riddick (Vin Diesel) to escape. Before the remaining passengers and crew can begin worrying about Riddick, they discover that the planet is infested with alien creatures that come out at night and destroy everything they encounter.

The crew ends up turning to Riddick to help get them out of the situation. It turns out that Riddick has enhanced eyes which allow him to see in the dark, which helps him reluctantly navigate the crew to safety. “Pitch Black” is a great sci-fi thrill ride that also made more than double its budget at the box office. The movie doesn’t spare much time on Riddick’s backstory, but fans were so intrigued by his character that they demanded more.

“Pitch Black” director David Twohy returned to write and direct a new movie that would dive deeper into Riddick’s life, along with the larger sci-fi universe that surrounds him. “The Chronicles of Riddick” begins shortly after the events of “Pitch Black,” when bounty hunters arrive on an icy alien world, looking for Riddick. He kills the men pursuing him and flies off in their ship to a world called Helion Prime. There, Riddick meets up with the man that put a bounty on him — the holy Imam from “Pitch Black,” played by Keith David. 

From this stately religious leader, Riddick learns that a fearsome cult called the Necromongers are waging war across the galaxy, recruiting more members and killing anyone who stands in their way. The leader of the Necromongers, the Lord Marshal (Colm Feore, who was unrecognizable as Marvel’s Laufey in “Thor”), takes a special interest in killing Riddick when he learns that the man is a survivor of Furya, a planet the Necromongers destroyed long ago.

“The Chronicles of Riddick” doesn’t just continue the story of the mysterious prisoner from “Pitch Black.” It gives Riddick a deep backstory, ties him into a grand prophecy, and sets up future adventures with its ending. It even features Dame Judi Dench as a mysterious elemental. “Chronicles” is everything a Riddick fan might want, but the movie isn’t necessarily a critical crowd pleaser. The movie has only a 29% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, but it’s still worth a watch for anyone who enjoyed the previous film.

Almost a decade after “The Chronicles of Riddick” failed to impress critics (though fans were happy), the franchise, and writer-director David Twohy, returned to theaters. 2013’s “Riddick” picks up a couple of years after the ending of “Chronicles.” Riddick has become the leader of the Necromongers, but he’s more interested in tracking down his ruined homeworld of Furya than in leading the cult. 

Riddick makes a deal with Commander Vaako (Karl Urban), and exchanges leadership of the Necromongers for the secret location of Furya. Unfortunately for Riddick, Vaako’s deal was a trap, and he finds himself once again trapped on a hostile alien planet, fighting for his survival.

“Riddick” takes the franchise back to its roots and focuses on a small-scale story of shady spacers — featuring an early role from fellow Guardian of the Galaxy Dave Bautista, and also starring Katee Sackhoff, our beloved “Star Wars” Mandalorian Bo-Katan Kryze — working together to defeat violent alien creatures. The movie lets its action shine, and because of that, it’s arguably a more entertaining experience than “Chronicles.” With a 58% on Rotten Tomatoes, “Riddick” may not be one of the best sci-fi movies of all time, but it certainly makes for a fun two-hour experience.

In theory, it doesn’t matter all that much what order you choose to watch the Riddick movies. There is an ongoing arc, but each movie is pretty well focused on its own plot. “Pitch Black” was always meant to stand alone, and “Chronicles” is such a sprawling tale packed with lore that it’s basically an alternate starting point for the series. “Riddick” is technically a direct sequel to “Chronicles,” but it quickly moves on from its predecessor’s story and becomes self-contained. If you don’t watch the movies in chronological order, you’ll still be able to follow along just fine.

Of course, if you really want to experience the entire Riddick timeline, then you’ll have to go beyond the movies. In 2004, a short animated film called “The Chronicles of Riddick: Dark Fury” expanded on the events that took place between “Pitch Black” and “Chronicles.” There are also two prequel video games called “Escape from Butcher Bay” and “Assault on Dark Athena.” 

The games tell stories set before the events of “Pitch Black,” so hardcore fans will want to check out what they have to say about Riddick’s history. Because the games are roughly 20 years old, it may be easier to watch a Let’s Play plot recap about them after watching all the Riddick movies. Ultimately, though, how you choose to move through the storyline is entirely up to you.