Prime Video's latest spy-themed TV show, Citadel, cost Amazon a whopping $250 million to make but failed to garner a large audience, despite having big names on its production side. The show is executive produced by the acclaimed Russo Brothers, who gained fame through their work on Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, which were successful blockbuster films. The Russo Brothers also recently directed the highest-budget Netflix movie, The Gray Man, which had a lower budget compared to Citadel, featured renowned actors like Chris Evans, and proved to be quite successful for the streaming service.
However, the same couldn't be said for Citadel, as the show turned out to be a huge failure, not even making it into the top 10 most-watched streaming shows during its release, according to a report from Bloomberg. Citadel's failure even led Amazon's CEO to himself question the high budget for the show. The show looked promising in its early trailers but still managed to fail, despite having veteran filmmakers and actors by its side. What is Prime Video's Citadel even about, and what's the reason behind the TV show's failure? Will the show be renewed for a second season on Prime?
What Is Citadel About?
Prime Video's Citadel's plot revolves around two spies, Mason Kane, and Nadia Sinh, played by Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra, respectively. Mason and Nadia are members of a secret spy agency known as Citadel, which is loyal to no nation. The six-episode spy show draws inspiration from previous spy movies like the Tenet and the Bourne franchise. The global spy agency is tasked with overseeing other spy agencies so their actions don't wreak havoc.
In the show, Citadel is fighting against the Manticore, a powerful syndicate that is attempting to obtain nuclear materials. Both Mason and Nadia are tasked with stopping the Manticore's plans, but the spies become entangled in a train explosion after being ambushed by the Manticore. Surprisingly, Mason and Nadia survive the explosion and are given new identities, their past wiped clean, and are now living ordinary lives.
Eight years later, Mason encounters a former colleague and spy named Bernard Orlick, who asks for his help in preventing the Manticore from establishing a new world order. During their mission, Mason reunites with his long-lost love, Nadia, who works at a restaurant but has only vague memories of their past, mainly from the train accident. Gradually, they begin to remember each other and take on the mission to save the world from the Manticore.
Why Did Citadel Fail?
Citadel's failure can be attributed to multiple factors, with the primary one being its excessively high budget. The show had to be exceptionally successful to generate enough revenue to surpass its production costs. Unfortunately, despite the significant investment, the six-episode spy TV show suffered from a poorly written script. Moreover, the action scenes in Citadel fell short due to poorly choreographed sequences, editing, and inadequate visual effects (VFX). Additionally, the length of the episodes was incredibly short, with runtimes of 35-40 minutes, which would not be a problem if the show had incredible action sequences and an exciting story. Amazon also releases new episodes weekly so it means waiting seven days for a show that can be binge-watched in one sitting and barely cross the runtime of a movie.
However, these issues are not the sole reasons behind the show's failure. The uninspired and recycled plot, reminiscent of numerous spy movies and TV shows, failed to captivate viewers. The progression of the plot was lacking, resulting in viewers showing little interest in the main characters of the show. Overall, viewers complained about the show being too generic.
Will there be a Citadel season 2?
One would think that Citadel wouldn't be renewed for a second season after such a disastrous first one, but that is false. Citadel had already been renewed for a second season on Prime Video before the release of the first. It seems that Amazon had blind faith in the show, not even waiting for audience reviews before airing the first season. Although there isn't much known about the second season of the show, both Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas will be reprising their roles as Mason and Nadia, respectively, with potentially new cast members being added.
Moreover, all of Season 2's episodes will now be directed by Joe Russo with a shift in direction. Season 2 will address some subplots introduced in the first season, such as Mason's backstory and the future of the spy couple. The release date of the second season is currently unknown but is speculated to release as early as 2025. Citadel 2 will have to improve massively upon the first season, now facing immense pressure from Amazon's CEO and poor ratings.
However, this isn't all for the franchise, as Amazon intends to create a whole universe around Citadel called "The Citadel Spyverse". Apart from the second season, multiple spin-offs of the show are already in development with Citadel: Diana being the first. The first teaser of the show dropped last month with a release date planned for next year in 2024.
Citadel: Diana will be an Italian spin-off and will follow the lead actress, Matilda De Angelis on her journey from being a cop to a Citadel agent. It is also speculated that Citadel: Diana will also feature two timelines in the show just like in Citadel. The cast members of the show are also being kept under wraps so we don't know if the show will contain reprising or new characters. It seems that fans of the show will have plenty to look forward to, as Amazon has planned more Citadel journeys in various countries such as India, Italy (as mentioned earlier), Spain, and Mexico.
Citadel is now available to stream on Prime Video.