Russo Brothers’ Creative Renewal for Amazon’s ‘Citadel’ Series Raises Budget to $200 Million (Exclusive)

It was supposed to be an Amazon Prime Video flagship series, with top Hollywood talent leading what was envisioned as a major franchise for the e-commerce giant. However, cost overruns and creative differences plague the series, which has quietly become one of the most expensive shows ever produced.

I knew you CitadelFrom a series of global events The Avengers s gray man Directors Joe and Anthony Russo and film and television writers Josh Appelbaum and Andre Nemec.

Many sources say the hollywood reporter This difference in vision caused half the creative team to leave and forced the show, a spy thriller that would launch local spin-offs, into a round of expensive reshoots.

Now the seven-episode series, which once cost at least $160 million, is worth $75 million, sources said, and is on track to become the second most expensive show ever made. Spiraling costs and acquisitions occur with the launch of Amazon The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerwhich has the particularity of being the most dear in television history, The rights alone cost $250 million and the first season is expected to cost at least $465 million.

Streaming wars have boosted show and movie budgets in recent years as companies compete with each other for streaming eyes. In case power rings, may have worked, as the show received mostly glowing reviews that also praise the value of the productions seen on screen. Though it’s too early to judge ItalianFate, the behind-the-scenes battles show how the pressures of such a series can lead to the breakdown of creative partnerships and how there seems to be no limit to spending in pursuit of a series of landmark events.

Citadel was the passion project of Amazon studio head Jennifer Salk, who was looking for a big title to make waves. And I got this 😮 The Avengers– A spy show in style, with spies from major countries teaming up for the final mission. And even cooler, the show is spawning local spin-offs, with the spy heroes having their own adventures on their own turf. Among the countries targeted were India, Italy and Mexico.

Citadel It was created and approved with much fanfare befitting the talent involved. The Russo brothers, who will serve as executive producers, were thrilled with the box office success. The Avengers Films. And Appelbaum and Nemec, part of the collective of writers known as Midnight Radio, were known for their acclaimed work in television and films like Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol s Ninja Turtle. The group sympathized with the Russos and had a partnership that included the first deal with the film directors’ company, AGBO.

Game of thrones Starring Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra Jonas, the cast spent most of 2021 filming the show, which ended in December.

That’s when the production team came back Citadel It began to split into factions.. According to sources, Amazon had some reservations about the first images, with the Russos being less involved due to the focus on their own expensive action project. gray man, climbing with a parachute. This led to creative differences and resulted in two competing cuts, one driven by Rousseaus, the other by Appelbaum and Nemec. As the weeks passed, other project commitments slowed the creative playing field for two opposing forces, Joe Russo and Appelbaum, who served as executive producer on the series.

Amazon chose to go with Russo and fired Appelbaum just days before Christmas. A source close to the project says: “What should have happened is that Joe turned to Josh and said, ‘Let’s get together and fix this,’ rather than doing it alone. That’s not what partners should do. “

However, Appelbaum was not alone. Brian Kirk, known for his work Game of thrones s terrible pennyAnd whoever directed five of the seven episodes also left, as did producer Sarah Bradshaw, among others.

Amazon has not commented on the budget or launch. Two insiders noted that while the budget was $250 million gross, it included high COVID-19 costs that weren’t anticipated when the series was originally lit. It also doesn’t take into account the significant tax breaks for filming in places like London.

AGBO did not comment. WME, which represents Appelbaum and Nemec, also declined to comment.

Another source notes that across the television landscape, cost overruns and program overhauls have become more common in recent years. “Many shows suffer because executives don’t have experience at this level of production or dealing with artists,” says a television veteran. ItalianThe s scale was so complex that, according to sources, it fired three units simultaneously.

It is unclear where and how the different views of the show originated. A person familiar with the conflict said that the pilot version of Appelbaum featured the spies in a spectacular ski and skating sequence, creating a spy-versus-spy situation before advancing the story five years ago, with the characters out of memory. about your previous occupation. Rousseau’s version, according to this source, began at age five, canceling the action sequence.

In any case, AGBO is now responsible CitadelAnd Amazon hired David Whale to rewrite the show and give it more ground. Weil is best known as a creator huntersAmazon’s Nazi-hunting show starring Logan Lerman and Al Pacino.

Thomas Siegel, a veteran cinematographer who directed two episodes of the series Citadel, officially took over as director of filming, which continued into the spring and early summer. Siegel has an established history with the Russians. He was their director of photography. Cherrythey drove and then Extraction, which they produced. However, a source says that Joe Russo was heavily involved in the filming. The show is already in post-production. No premiere date has been set.

Appelbaum, Nemec and their Midnight Radio brand no longer have their first AGBO deal. The duo left television and returned to writing films. Ironically, they’re back in business with Amazon, working under a feature name. Heads of state starring Idris Elba and John Cena.

Events happening behind the scenes Citadel Confirm the Russians’ reputation as the lowest-spending filmmakers. gray manStarring Ryan Gosling and Chris Evans, it cost over $250 million and was the most expensive Netflix movie ever made. Even a little character drama starring Tom Holland. CherryHe became known for significant cost overruns.

The filmmakers amassed enough goodwill to justify this budget as one of the greatest films of all time. The Avengers s captain America operating franchises Extraction It is the sixth most watched original film on Netflix. gray man According to Netflix, it is the fourth most watched original.

Filmmakers also continue to be able to find companies to dig into their pockets, including for their latest effort, a sci-fi thriller titled electrical state. I like gray manIt’s being made for Netflix, but only after a budget dispute with Universal, the project’s previous home, did the studio move it after the directors made it clear that $200 million wasn’t enough for their sci-fi vision.