IT’S ALREADY been one hell of a year for people who love television in the world of spies, espionage, and everything in between. Netflix subscribers have been treated to fun binges in the form of The Night Agent and The Diplomat, while those faithful to Paramount+ have been rewarded with the fun return of Kiefer Sutherland in Rabbit Hole. Now, Prime Video gets their chance to take a shot at things with Citadel, a project that’s both massively-ambitious and massively-expensive, with a reported price tag of $300 million for the first season.
Will it be worth the money? Believe it or not, that’s only the second-most expensive project that the streamer has launched in the last year; The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power supposedly finished its first season with a $715 million budget. At the end of the day, just like with Rings of Power, the future of Citadel will likely rest on those of us watching at home.
The idea for the show itself is simple enough: Citadel is an international spy agency that’s loyal to no nation and no particular cause. Their only goal is to take out bad guys and do the right thing. They are constantly at battle with Manticore, another off-the-grid spy agency that has aims to destroy citadel—and in the show’s opening sequence, appears to maybe, possibly, kind of be successful.
And so we enter our lead characters: Mason Kane (played by Game of Thrones, Bodyguard, and Eternals star Richard Madden) and Nadia Sinh (played by Priyanka Chopra Jonas). They’re extremely competent spies who seem to have a playful rivalry with one another (and perhaps a hint of a romantic past). But they also are present when Manticore pull their big move—and are left without any memory of what “Citadel” even is.
That brings us to Bernard Orlick, played with a wonderful charm by Stanley Tucci and easily the best part of the show. Bernard is Citadel’s tech guru—and the only agent who retains his memory after Manticore’s big attack. It’s up to Bernard to get Mason and Nadia back into the saddle when a major threat emerges, 8 years later.
This all sounds like a pretty standard and fun spy/espionage thriller. But the hook of Citadel—which comes from producers Joe and Anthony Russo—is that it’s planned as just the main, flagship hub for a franchise that’s thinking big. Just as Citadel (the agency in the show) operates internationally, the show is thinking the same way; there are plans for spinoff series to follow Citadel agents all around the world.
But first and foremost, Prime Video and Citadel is going to need you to get invested in the main show—and here’s how you’ll be able to do it.
When do new episodes of Citadel come out?
Following a double episode premiere, episodes of Citadel will be released on Amazon Prime Video weekly, over the course of five consecutive Fridays.
When does the next Citadel episode come out?
The next episode of Citadel will hit Prime Video on Friday, May 26 (though keep an eye out for it on the Thursday night before).
What time do Citadel episodes come out?
Citadel episodes officially hit Prime Video on Fridays, but because episodes are officially released at midnight UK time, Prime Video originals usually hit a bit earlier. Keep an eye out somewhere around 7 or 8 PM EST on Thursday nights.
How many episodes of Citadel are there?
Citadel will be six episodes in total—and with its total budget of $300 million, that means you’re watching a $50 million production each time you hit play.
Here’s the complete release schedule for Citadel.
Episode 1 – Now streaming as of April 28
Episode 2 – Now streaming as of April 28
Episode 3 – Now streaming as of May 5
Episode 4 – Now streaming as of May 12
Episode 5 – Now streaming as of May 19
Episode 6 – Streaming on May 26
Evan is the culture editor for Men’s Health, with bylines in The New York Times, MTV News, Brooklyn Magazine, and VICE. He loves weird movies, watches too much TV, and listens to music more often than he doesn’t.
Milan Polk is an Editorial Assistant for Men’s Health who specializes in entertainment and lifestyle reporting, and has worked for New York Magazine’s Vulture and Chicago Tribune.
