Richard Madden on Citadel, working with Priyanka Chopra and life post Game of Thrones: ‘I am under pressure all the time’

In an interview with indianexpress.com, Richard said he looks at his Game of Thrones stint as a learning experience which helped make him a better actor– but that doesn’t mean he isn’t “under pressure” all the time.

“It was an exciting opportunity for me to engage with 30 hours’ worth of TV. As an actor, to take a character and play it over the course of five years, was a new thing for me. Then to take six months away from it and to watch it back and then go back to the storytelling again, as an artiste that was a fascinating process for me. To take these breaks between seasons and to think, ‘What can I bring to the character now that will surprise people?’ But I am under pressure all the time, it never ends! I think that’s what keeps me on my toes,” he added.

 

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Citadel features Priyanka Chopra as an elite spy Nadia Sinh opposite Richard, who stars as Mason Kane in the globe-trotting series scheduled to release on April 28. Richard said teaming up with Priyanka for the series was an unforgettable experience as the Quantico star is “so passionate, so present”.

“It is really inspiring. We love sparring, pulling the best from each other, challenge each other, much like how the two characters on the show. They are always dancing together. Priyanka is so wonderfully instinctual and engaged in everything she does, that makes it very easy for me as an actor to look her in the eye, respond and try to create something honest together,” he said.

The ambitious spy drama is produced by the Russo Brothers’ (filmmakers Joe and Anthony Russo) AGBO and showrunner David Weil. Richard said Citadel aligned with his idea of constantly trying to “keep learning, to keep pushing” himself as it offered him to play dual parts, which he had never attempted before.

“Citadel is a great challenge for me, to play two characters in the same body. It is something I wanted to explore and play with and Citadel gave me that opportunity to do that. I had to keep up with what was asked of me, be loyal to the storytelling, in this case, a huge amount of talent and creatives that have so much into the show. It is a beautiful evolution for me.”

What also worked greatly for the actor, was how the series had lavishly mounted action pieces, but underneath that, had a strong beating heart. “That’s what makes Citadel brand new for me. I have never seen anything that pushes the action element as much as it pushes the drama. Not only that, it also tries to incorporate and entangle them together. We have worked hard in getting your heart’s racing in huge action sequences and to have the same feeling watching two people sitting across the table.

“It’s really difficult to do but that’s what brilliant about the Russo brothers, who are the ones to set the tone, give this new feeling to a show. As an actor, it was great for me because we get to have fun, do action and to push yourself in the drama world. It taps into everything and dials up each part with each episode,” he added.

Citadel will act as the flagship show that will blend with local shows already under production in India and Italy, starring Matilda De Angelis, Varun Dhawan, and Samantha Ruth Prabhu, respectively.