Citadel, the big-budget Prime Video spy series, may have run into a foe more implacable than its sworn enemy, Manticore: production difficulties. The second season of the Richard Madden–Priyanka Chopra series has been pushed back from fall 2025 to spring 2026. Furthermore, the series’ spinoffs are on pause until the flagship series can right itself. The Hollywood Reporter has the news that parent company Amazon is not pleased with what they’ve seen of Citadel‘s second season.
Citadel, the brainchild of MCU mavens Joe and Anthony Russo, was positioned as a signature series for Prime Video, and was afforded a budget to match: originally budgeted at $160 million USD, production issues and reshoots during the filming of its first season bumped it up to $235 million. That made it the second-most expensive TV series ever made, eclipsed only by Prime Video‘s own Lord of the Rings offshoot, The Rings of Power. Nevertheless, the series was renewed for a second season, which wrapped last November. It was intended to also serve as a vehicle to launch a number of international spinoffs: two have been released so far, the Italian Citadel: Diana, and the India-set Citadel: Honey Bunny. Further spinoffs were planned for Spain and Mexico; however, those plans, as well as renewals for Diana and Honey Bunny, are on hold at the moment, even though the two extant spinoffs are said to have performed well for the streamer.
What Is ‘Citadel’ About?
Mason Kane (Madden, Bodyguard) and Nadia Sinh (Chopra, Quantico) are glamorous agents of the globe-trotting intelligence organization Citadel, as well as lovers. After Kane uncovers evidence of a new subversive entity, Manticore, led by Dahlia Archer (Lesley Manville, The Crown), he and Sinh are seemingly killed in an ambush. Eight years later, Kane is now “Kyle Conroy,” and is married to Abby (Ashleigh Cummings, NOS4A2), while Sinh is restaurant manager “Charlotte Vernon.” They have no memories of their former selves until Citadel agent Bernard Orlick (Stanley Tucci, The Devil Wears Prada) comes into their lives in need of help. They’re soon pressed back into action, only to learn more devastating secrets about their pasts. The future-set Citadel: Diana stars Matilda De Angelis as an agent torn between Citadel and Manticore, while Citadel: Honey Bunny is set in the past, and centers around Nadia’s parents, who are played by Varun Dhawan and Samantha Ruth Prabhu.
The first season of Citadel received mixed reviews from critics, and currently holds a 51% Rotten rating on Rotten Tomatoes. In her review, Collider‘s Abby Kavenaugh was guardedly positive about the series, stating “Citadel is a thrilling ride, as long as you don’t take it too seriously and embrace its slightly campy side.”
Citadel‘s second season has reportedly been delayed to spring 2026, while its spinoffs are on hold.
via Collider