Citadel’s full cost to Amazon, including its spinoffs, is reportedly revealed in a new report. Created by Josh Appelbaum, Bryan Oh, and David Weil, with Joe and Anthony Russo executive producing, the Prime Video espionage series stars Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas as Mason Kane and Nadia Sinh, respectively, two Citadel agency spies attempting to regain their memories as they fight back against the villainous Manticore syndicate. The show had a notoriously rocky road to completion and suffered from a ballooning budget and lackluster reviews, butCitadelseason 2was still given the green light, in addition to spinoffs.
What This Means For Citadel
The Show’s Performance & Position At Prime Video Explained
Citadelseason 1 reviewswere decidedly mixed, with critics seemingly in agreement that the show’s gargantuan budget couldn’t make up for its familiar story and cookie-cutter characters. OnRotten Tomatoes,season 1 has only a 51% critics score, and the audience-driven Popcornmeter score is only marginally better at 62%, with neither being optimal results given the show’s price tag. In terms of viewership, the picture is less clear. The show wasn’t a major performer on the Nielsen viewership charts, butSalkedid claim it debuted at #1 on Prime Video as part of a celebratory Instagram post:
Citadel, the #1 title on Prime! In its series debut, this show attracted one of the largest global audiences in the history of Prime Video – such an incredible performance for new and original IP!
In addition to a season 2 renewal, twoCitadelspinoffs were also given the green light.Citadel: Diana, an Italian spinoff, was released in October 2024, whileCitadel: Honey Bunny, an Indian spinoff, was released in November 2024. Both earned more positive reviews than the flagship show and were strong performers internationally, though their success in North America seems to have been limited. With the franchise having reportedly cost Amazon such a huge sum and with Salke now gone,it’s possible thatCitadelseason 2 will mark the end of the franchise.
Our Take On Citadel’s Reportedly Massive Price Tag
Amazon’s Big Spending Isn’t Paying Off
Amazon clearly has a lot of money to throw around given the company’s purchase of MGM for $8.5 billion, followed by another $1 billion forcreative control of theJames Bondfranchise, specifically. That’s not to mention the company’s wildly expensiveLord of the Ringsshow,The Rings of Power, which is reported to cost $1 billion for five seasons.This certainly doesn’t seem sustainable, especially if shows likeCitadelandThe Rings of Powerdon’t actually perform that well.
This $300 Million Show With An Incredible Cast Remains One Of My Biggest TV Disappointments A Year Later
A megabudget Amazon spy series from the Russo brothers was meant to reinvent the genre, but a year after it debuted I’m still disappointed by it.
Though the response toCitadelmay have been more acceptable had the budget been half or a third as big,the price combined with the muted reception (and behind-the-scenes drama) makes it seem like a failure.The Rings of Powerlooks to be more successful overall and reviews improved for season 2, but this show, too, doesn’t seem to have met expectations. With Salke now out, it will be interesting to see whetherCitadelcontinues beyond season 2. It certainly wouldn’t be surprising if it was quietly shelved.
