The second season of Citadel dropped on Amazon Prime Video on Wednesday without much fanfare or noise. Despite it being one of the biggest and most expensive TV shows ever made, there were no promotions and little buzz. Yet, the Priyanka Chopra and Richard Madden-starrer managed to open as the second-most-watched show on the streaming platform worldwide, according to figures from FlixPatrol.
Citadel S2 opens at #2 on Prime Video
Citadel season 2 premiered on Prime Video on May 6, with all seven episodes dropping simultaneously. FlixPatrol, a platform that monitors streaming views across major platforms worldwide, reported that Citadel amassed 341 points (based on viewership figures and global reach) on its first day. It sat at number 2 in the list of biggest Prime Video shows of the day, behind only The Boys, which held on to the top spot with over 500 points. Citadel season 2 was among the top 5 shows on the platform in 37 countries, including India. However, it failed to reach the top anywhere in the world, due to The Boys’ continued dominance. Eric Kripke’s irreverent superhero show dropped the sixth episode of its final season on the same day as Citadel S2 release. Citadel season 2 beat the popular animated show Invincible, which slipped to third with 294 points.
However, Citadel season 2 did not rank among the top shows worldwide on platforms on its release day. Netflix’s Man on Fire dominated the charts with 864 points, while shows like Should I Marry a Murderer, Star Wars: Maul Shadow Lord, and Euphoria took the remaining spots in the top 5, along with The Boys.
Citadel season 2’s muted release
The release date for the second season of Citadel was announced just two weeks before the show was set to stream, along with a trailer. A week later, a poster shared by the show’s official Instagram page, and reposted by the cast, re-emphasised it. But it was all muted. There were no cast interviews, no grand premiere, and not even video bytes from the cast. The Russos, who are executive producing the show, dropped a ‘no spoiler please’ message on Instagram a day prior to the release, and that was it. In contrast, when the first season was launched in 2023, there were premieres in four cities around the world and extensive promotions on three continents.
The spy thriller stars Richard Madden and Priyanka Chopra as two secret agents who, after being attacked by members of a rival agency and having their memories wiped, must reclaim their lost identities and fight back. All episodes of the second season are currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video.