Citadel – All We Know About The Russo Brothers Amazon Series
Citadel is an Amazon series from the Russo brothers which is expected some time in 2023.
When Anthony and Joseph Russo joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2014 with Captain America: The Winter Soldier (Chris Evans’s second go around as Cap), their stock as moviemakers jumped significantly. Four MCU films later, the Russo Brothers were so sought after they could pretty much get whatever budget they needed for whatever project they wanted. Their latest is a television series, Citadel and it marks the first time the Russo Brothers have returned, together, to the small screen as directors in a decade.
So, what do we know about this project that makes it special enough to bring the Russo Brothers’ talents back to the small screen?
CITADEL WAS ANNOUNCED BY AMAZON PRIME IN 2018
When Amazon handed the Russo Brothers the keys to the Citadel car, it was back in 2018 while they were in the middle of what may go down as Marvel’s best two films ever, Avengers: Infinity War and the heartbreaking yet exhilarating, Avengers: Endgame.
At that time, COVID was not yet a thing, so when COVID finally reared its ugly head, it put a damper on the filming of Citadel. It was thought then that the series would find its way to Amazon Prime in 2021. Obviously, that has not been the case and the wait continues for this series.
CITADEL WILL BE A SPY SERIES THAT WILL HAVE OTHER OFFSHOOT PROGRAMS
The first thing to know is that the Russo Brothers’ Citadel is a globe-trotting spy series that will undoubtedly be filled with action and romance. But the series is more than just your average ho-hum spy caper. The Russo Brothers have big plans for Citadel, plans that are both complex and never before seen on the small screen.
While the Citadel will focus on the main story, the “never before seen” portion comes from the international spinoffs that will be produced in the local country’s language. The locations for the international spinoffs include Italy, India, Mexico, and Spain. If you’re scratching your head, you are not alone.
According to the Russo Brothers and co-creator Patrick Moran, the series will center on the main Citadel action, but the corresponding local language satellite series will play an important role in the Citadel universe.
Amazon spoke about what this all means, saying, “All of the local series are meant to enhance the entire entertainment experience and will be available for the viewer to deep dive into an imagined layered world.” This is a big experiment that we are interested to see how the Russo Brothers, Moran, and the entire Citadel cast will pull it off.
Jennifer Salke, Head of Amazon Studios, explained the Russo Brothers’ Citadel to the best of her ability. “It will also include several creatively aligned but standalone local original productions that can enhance the experience of engaging the show, Italy, India, and Mexico included just to get started,” Salke said. “These shows are already underway being executed by some of the top talented creators from each of these territories, many who have been running some of our successful overseas series.”
There hasn’t been much more information shared as to how the international spinoffs tie into the main series, but what we do know is that the local productions, whether they be in Italy, Mexico, etc., will be handled by local production staff and include local stars.
“The idea is to create a truly global action-packed spy series,” Salke continued. “It’s a totally innovative multi-faceted international approach to storytelling.”
RICHARD MADDEN AND PRIYANKA CHOPRA JONAS WILL STAR
It was Jennifer Salke who was the first to announce the two lead actors in the Russo Brothers Citadel. They are Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas. As the details of the series plot are being kept under tight wraps, so are the names of their characters. Joining Madden and Chopra Jonas are Stanley Tucci, Ashleigh Cummings, Leo Woodall, Timothy Busfield, and Roland Møller.
THE PLOT OF CITADEL HAS REMAINED A SECRET
Amazon, the Russo Brothers, and Moran have done everything they can to keep the plot of the series quiet. While we do know that the series is “an expansive and groundbreaking global event comprising a mothership series and several local language satellite series,” there is very little else to go on.
What is known is that Citadel is the name of an intelligence agency and that Møller plays a character named Laszlo Milla, who works for Manticore, Citadel’s rival agency.
Milla had been captured and held by Citadel for years, all thanks to agent Mason Kane, who we are presuming will be played by Madden. When Milla goes free (not sure how), he is out for revenge. Chopra Jonas will play agent Nadia Singh and undoubtedly will also be on Milla’s hit list.
Madden may have shared a bit more than the Russo Brothers wanted him to share. “There are multiple characters and multiple storylines that all intertwine, and I personally play a character who is an amnesiac—eight years of his life, he’s basically become a new person,” Madden explained.
“There’s a journey of discovering who he was before the accident happened, and he no longer remembers anything. It’s a clash between the life that he’s been living for eight years, and the life that he used to live. You get to delve into exploring the psyche of dealing with the consequences of things that you’re not aware that you’ve done.”
Krishna D.K. is the co-director of the India offshoot and offered a bit more on Citadel. “Every country’s series is its own series with multiple seasons, but there’s going to be crossovers and cross-references.” Yes, our interest is piqued.
CITADEL IS EXPECTED TO RELEASE IN 2023
Although there is no official release date for the Russo Brothers Citadel, we do know Amazon plans on making 2023 its launch year. We know that filming was completed in June 2022, so as of now, Citadel is in post-production where all the highly anticipated series’ special effects will be added. As soon as more information is given out, along with a trailer, for Citadel, we will be sure to update everyone.
THE RUSSO BROTHERS COULD RETURN TO THE MCU
The last time the Russo Brothers were involved with the MCU was back in 2019 when Avengers: Endgame dropped. Since then, they have kindly deflected the question when asked what comes next for them and the MCU. When Variety spoke with them and once again asked that very question, they got the same answer, “We are always talking; we’d need to see what would work.”
It was Joe who finally said what the brothers knew for some time. “We won’t be ready to do anything with Marvel until the end of the decade.” We are still a good seven years away from that.
While they wait, the Russo Brothers have put together their $1 billion studio, AGBO, with help from their producing partner, Mike Larocca. So, expect more monumental projects such as Citadel before the Russo Brothers venture back to what made them famous.
