Citadel’s Full Cost To Amazon Reportedly Revealed, Including The Infamously Expensive Show’s Spinoffs

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, but Citadel season 2 was still given the green light, in addition to spinoffs.

Matthew Belloni now shares a new Citadel update in his Puck newsletter as Amazon MGM Studios head Jennifer Salke, who greenlit the show and renewed it for season 2, departs the company. Belloni reports that Salke spent $250 million making the flagship show, which eventually suffered from two competing cuts and disagreements between the Russo brothers and Appelbaum and Oh. Factoring in the behind-the-scenes drama, Salke's renewal of Citadel for season 2, and the international spinoffs, Belloni reports that the show has now cost Amazon a whopping $500 million, per a source inside the company.

What This Means For Citadel

The Show's Performance & Position At Prime Video Explained

Citadel season 1 reviews were 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. On Rotten 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, but Salke did claim it debuted at #1 on Prime Video as part of a celebratory Instagram post:

In addition to a season 2 renewal, two Citadel spinoffs were also given the green light. Citadel: Diana, an Italian spinoff, was released in October 2024, while Citadel: 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 that Citadel season 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 for creative control of the James Bond franchise, specifically. That's not to mention the company's wildly expensive Lord of the Rings show, The Rings of Power, which is reported to cost $1 billion for five seasons. This certainly doesn't seem sustainable, especially if shows like Citadel and The Rings of Power don't actually perform that well.

Richard Madden looking shocked as Mason Kane in Amazon's Citadel against a purple background of money

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Though the response to Citadel may 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 Power looks 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 whether Citadel continues beyond season 2. It certainly wouldn't be surprising if it was quietly shelved.