With a production budget of US$300 million, the six-episode first season ranks as one of the most expensive television shows of all time. The first season premiered on April 28, 2023, with its first two episodes. In March 2023, it was renewed for a second season, with Joe Russo announced to direct all the episodes in the season.
Multiple non-English language spin-off shows have been announced, with settings being in the Italian Alps, India, Spain, and Mexico. The Italian series, Citadel: Diana, premiered October 10, 2024, while the Indian series, Citadel: Honey Bunny, premiered November 7, 2024.
Amazon Studios chief Jennifer Salke first came up with the idea for the series and approached the Russo brothers and their independent studio AGBO about creating an ambitious, global spy show in mid-2018. The series was originally a partnership between AGBO and the screenwriting collective Midnight Radio, comprising Josh Appelbaum and André Nemec. Appelbaum and Nemec departed the show during production in 2021, due to creative differences with the Russos. The Russos set up a second editing team and cut an alternate version of the season to compete with the main team, and Amazon chose the Russos' version after focus-group testings. This led to the hiring of David Weil as the new showrunner and extensive reshoots in 2022.[7][8]
As of 2023, Citadel was the second most expensive series of all time with a budget of US$300 million, largely due to the reshoots following Weil's hiring.[9][10] Prime Video renewed the series for a second season on March 14, 2023.[11]
Casting
Starring alongside Madden and Chopra, Roland Møller will play Laszlo Milla, a lead operative of Citadel's rival intelligence agency, Manticore.[12]
Filming
Filming on the main series began in January 2021 and wrapped the following December.[13][14] However, reshoots occurred in early and mid-2022 under the supervision of Weil, the Russos, and director Thomas Sigel.[7]
Citadel spies Mason Kane and Nadia Sinh are presumed killed during a mission in Italy when they are ambushed by Manticore agents. Eight years later, Mason, with no memory of his previous identity, lives a quiet life as Kyle Conroy with his wife and daughter. When Citadel agent Bernard Orlick learns that he is alive, and that Manticore agent Dahlia Archer is after a top-secret Citadel X case, Orlick abducts Kyle and his family, reveals Kyle's past to him, and persuades him to help retrieve the case to keep its potentially world-altering data out of Manticore's hands.
Nadia too survived the Italy mission. While escaping, she is held captive by an Italian man; she manages to kill him and escape, but her memory is remotely wiped out by Orlick. Eight years later, Mason retrieves the Citadel X case, but Orlick is captured by Archer's men. After discovering that Nadia is alive, Mason contacts her, helping her regain her memory through a serum in the case.
Mason's vulnerable and confused state makes him susceptible to false stories and propaganda, leading to the question of whether he will trust Nadia or if they will go their separate ways after the crucial mission.
Teleplay by : Josh Appelbaum & Bryan Oh and David Weil Story by : Josh Appelbaum & Bryan Oh
May 12, 2023 (2023-05-12)
In Morocco, Mason and Nadia enter the Manticore Black Site to rescue Carter. They tackle an army of unnamed goons, with Nadia taking the lead. However, Mason is still rusty in battle, as his memories and previous skills were lost forever. He nervously follows Nadia’s direction. They quickly make their way to Carter’s cell. The traumatized prisoner looks up at Mason and blames him for this incarceration. The series then jumps back to ten years earlier. Mason and Nadia are living it up in Paris, where they are slowly falling in love with one another. Nadia informs Mason that a new agent is joining the team. She worked with this spy before, and the agent ended up saving Nadia’s life.
Teleplay by : David Weil and Bryan Oh Story by : David Weil and Bryan Oh & Angela Russo-Otstot
May 19, 2023 (2023-05-19)
Mason learns that Nadia has a secret daughter, shaking the trust between them. As they confront their complicated past, Bernard helps them stay ahead of Manticore. With loyalties in question, the line between ally and enemy grows increasingly blurred, pushing them closer to uncovering Citadel’s true downfall.
Mason, Nadia, and Carter retrieve nuclear cores from a submarine, hoping to trade them for Mason and Nadia’s daughter, Asha. The tense exchange in Valencia leads to a firefight, but Mason saves Asha just in time. Dahlia Archer fakes her death after failing Manticore. Mason regains his lost memories, discovering he was manipulated into betraying Citadel, believing it would protect his family.
Music
Alex Belcher composed the first season, while Henry Jackman served as score producer. Sony Classical released the soundtrack.[15]
Citadel (Prime Video Original Series Soundtrack)[15]
No.
Title
Length
1.
"Citadel (Main Title Theme)"
1:19
2.
"The Train"
3:37
3.
"Bathroom Brawl"
4:45
4.
"Derailed"
3:38
5.
"Amnesia"
2:21
6.
"I Deserve to Know"
1:50
7.
"Family"
1:50
8.
"Taken"
1:07
9.
"The Brothers"
0:54
10.
"Dahlia Interviewed"
1:34
11.
"A Myth"
2:22
12.
"Backstory"
2:48
13.
"Backwoods Kidnapping"
1:45
14.
"Backstop"
2:20
15.
"It's Time"
2:12
16.
"Exceedingly Untrustworthy"
3:44
17.
"Message to Abbey"
1:20
18.
"Valencia"
0:50
19.
"You're Nadia"
1:11
20.
"Did You Just Throw a Knife?"
1:15
21.
"Nadia Back with a Vengeance"
4:14
22.
"Captured"
1:42
23.
"Stitched Up"
3:15
24.
"Ski Sequence"
4:40
25.
"They Meet"
2:03
26.
"Quite a Story"
1:39
27.
"Nadia & Mason"
1:13
28.
"Blacksite"
1:08
29.
"Rescue Mission"
2:31
30.
"Kiss & Tell"
2:22
31.
"The New Tier 1"
4:49
32.
"Interrogated"
5:00
33.
"You Only Get One Soul"
3:47
34.
"You Did This"
2:46
35.
"What if It Was Real?"
1:08
36.
"Headshot"
1:32
37.
"Did He Know?"
1:29
38.
"Can a Spy Truly Love?"
4:01
39.
"Goodbye"
2:07
40.
"The Truth"
3:35
41.
"The Bracelet"
2:21
42.
"Red Cell Mission"
5:14
43.
"A Seat at the Table"
1:54
44.
"Deactivating the Cores"
4:32
45.
"Reuniting"
2:14
46.
"A Favor"
6:39
Total length:
120:37
Release
The six-episode series premiered on Amazon Prime Video on April 28, 2023, with its first two episodes.[16]
Spin-offs
Citadel will include spin-off shows in different languages set in the Italian Alps, India, Spain, and Mexico.[17][18][19][20]
The Italian series, titled Citadel: Diana, is produced by Cattleya, part of ITV Studios, and was released in 2024.[21] At the end of season 1 of Citadel, there was a trailer for Citadel: Diana. The series was aired on October 9, 2024.[22]
The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported a 51% approval rating with an average rating of 5.7/10, based on 80 critic reviews. The website's critics consensus reads, "Citadel spares no expense but still feels underdeveloped, yielding a fairly fun spy caper that nonetheless creaks under the weight of its own exorbitance."[26]Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned a score of 51 out of 100 based on 29 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews".[27]The Economist called it "a big-budget, low-imagination thriller with plenty of explosions and no surprises."[28]
