We all know Vin Diesel for his success in 'The Fast & Furious', however, his first big break took place in the anti-hero film, 'Riddick'.
Oddly enough, the actor made his way through the ranks of theater, given the roles he would land in the future, most would scoff at that.
At the age of 54, Vin is living a comfortable lifestyle, with more than $200 million in the bank. From afar, fans might assume that the star made minimal risks throughout his career, given the success of the 'Fast & Furious' franchise, however, that couldn't be further from the truth.
Diesel rolled the dice a few times in his career, even going in the back of the camera in producer and director roles.
For a particular film, Vin was willing to put it all on the line, just so it would get made in the first place. Had the film failed, Vin revealed that he would've lost his house, along with everything he had made up until that point.
We'll identify the film in question, along with its legacy today.
Nobody Wanted To Make The Film
Convincing those in Hollywood to promote an R-rated film in this day and age, is almost impossible. Vin was quick to learn about this hurdle. The funding for this particular project did not come easy. In fact, Vin had to put up his own money for the film to be made.
"You can't count on your hands a bunch of rated-R movies that are getting a lot of play. They're so far and few between. In fact, we were victims of that in going the studio route with Chronicles of Riddick."
"Budget went up, and we went into that film we were going in rated-R, and the first thing taken out was rated-R. You want to spend that kind of money? You want to expand the mythology like that? You’ll have to reconfigure the way you're going to produce this movie and make it PG."
That's right, the film in question is none other than 'Riddick'.
The film had two previous installments, which include 'Pitch Black' and 'The Chronicles of Riddick'.
The third film was the riskiest of the bunch and it almost ended with Diesel living on the streets.
He Put His House On The Line
According to his interview alongside The Hollywood Reporter, Vin was willing to put his house up for grabs, all so he could make the film. Not only did he star in the film, but he was also a producer behind the scenes.
“I had to leverage my house,” Diesel said. “If we didn’t finish the film, I would be homeless.”
Something as simple as a comment from a fan gave him the motivation to get the film done.
“We want a rated-R movie and we’d be willing to pay $10 each. Surely you’d have enough to make it then.”
Said Diesel: “Something about that comment made me think, bless their heart, and if I can do anything with this newfound success, if I could do anything at all, I could deliver on that wish.”
Diesel took great pride in the project, especially given how different it was compared to other movie roles he took on in the past. In addition, his peers praised his work, both on and off the camera.
“Vin makes not only such a great acting partner but a phenomenal producer,” Sackhoff said. “Because he’s an actor, he understands giving the benefit to actors. He really let us all make our characters our own.”
The risk was all worth it, as it got done and in addition, the film brought in nearly $100 million off a $38 million budget, much less in terms of spending compared to the previous films.
Nowadays, Vin hasn't forgotten about the trilogy and a fourth film might be on its way.
Talks Of 'Riddick 4'
That's right, according to his words alongside Games Radar, a fourth film might be in the works, along with a video game.
"David Twohy, he wrote a great script. It's just a matter of timing when we get that opportunity to shoot that. But I believe we're shooting that in Australia."
"And it would be the fourth chapter in that series, which would be awesome."
Diesel also stated that a game would also be in the works when the film is released, "we would take advantage of the gaming space and add an extra chapter."
Seems like the journey might be continuing.
Sources: Games Radar, Hollywood Reporter & Collider
