Reluctant to take the role of Riddick. Hmm...how quickly things change huh Vincent.
Wasn't he the one championing the idea of a Riddick universe? As I recall, at one point Vin Diesel was all-in with any and all Riddick projects, so far as to actually invest some of his money in the developing process. The man was trying to make a franchise out of an anti-hero role in a cult- scifi movie.
Anyways, as much as I like the mythology of the series, I do regret the way Chronicles was handled. It came off feeling like a pg-13 Conan in space. There was no real tension in knowing that the protagonist is the fulfillment of a prophesy about a warrior-king. The movie basically ended by Conan, er, Riddick sitting on the throne of the Necromongers.
I would like to see another movie, and find it refreshing to see asshat actors willing to work for scale just to see a project through. Honestly, if Vin had not gotten in bed with Disney, maybe he would still be a hot commodity and could greenlight projects through just by association.
As for the plot of the film, that synopsis is rather lame and weak, sounds like a rehash of the previous movie and other scifi/cinema tropes. I for one don't want to see the last Furyan return to planet Krypton, er, Vegeta, er, I mean Furya. I loved Escape from Butcher Bay, but doubt many would want to see a "prequel", despite it being the source of Riddick's eyeshine ability. Didn't finish Athena so I can't speak for its plot.
I think if they're going to stick to the Pitch Black formula, they need to have it set in a confined space and not some grand scale set, where he goes from planet to planet. Also, Riddick works best when he has others to play off of and can show his animalistic/killer characteristics...so giving him a cast for more than him to either kill or save in predictable situations would be a plus.