Citadel: Dianais the first of several planned spinoffs meant to make Prime Video’sCitadela truly international franchise. Set in 2030 Milan, the 6-episode Italian-language series tells the story of Diana Cavalieri, an undercover Citadel agent trapped as a mole within the Manticore syndicate in a post-Citadel world. To survive, Diana has no choice but to trust the heir of Manticore’s Italian branch.
As seen in thisCitadel: Dianaclip, the series is a tense, stylish thriller in a fittingly similar vein toCitadel. For this, viewers have showrunner and executive producer Gina Gardini, among others like creator Alessandro Fabbri, to thank. The show is led by Italian actor and singer Matilda de Angelis in its titular role, and also stars Lorenzo Cervasio, Maurizio Lombardi, and Julia Piaton.
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Screen RantinterviewedCitadel: DianastarMatilda de Angelis andshowrunner Gina Gardini about their work bringingCitadelto Italy. The pair discussed what it meant to explore the story’s near-future setting and the implications of a larger Manticore presence. Gardini also weighed in on how the ever-expanding world ofCitadelcompares to the sprawling Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Matilda De Angelis Discusses Showcasing Different Eras Of Diana’s Life On Screen
Screen Rant: Matilda, you were playing Diana across very different times in her life [and at] different time periods. How did you not only dial in your own performance, but work with the hair team and wardrobe and everyone to make sure that your performance best matched all these different times and places?
Matilda de Angelis: It’s a very good question. As you said, we had to portray two different characters, in a way. It happens every time when you see pictures of yourself when you were little—you feel like you were a completely different person, and that’s what really happens. Younger Diana helped me to build the Diana in 2030, because without her traumas, without her past, without her fragility back then, I couldn’t build any sort of war machine, tough spy Diana in 2030.
We needed, of course, to set a big difference in style. From the fall of Citadel, we tell [a story] about an Italy where Manticore is out of the leash and controlling everything, so we were thinking about, “How can the style in general, and specifically in Italy, change with this military oppression?” So, [with] Veronica Fragola, who is the costume designer, and Giorgio Gregorini, who is the hair designer, we thought about building this future that has some influence in the past. [It’s something that draws] from a specific period in Italy, but that feels from a near future. It makes sense, but it’s still different in a way, but not unrealistic.
You Don’t Need To Have Seen Citadel To Enjoy Citadel: Diana, Says Gina Gardini
It’s A “Truly Standalone Series”
Gina, the coolest thing aboutCitadelto me is the fact that, from day one, it seems like there were plans to make this a truly international franchise. As this world grows, is this a Marvel kind of thing where people have to watch every iteration and every aspect in order to understand the full story? Or are this show and the others designed to work on their own, totally?
Gina Gardini: I can’t speak to sort of the larger plan, but the initial plan was to create a group of shows that were truly standalone series, and the only thing that was tying them together was the fact that there was this world of Citadel and these two rival agencies. Beyond that the sky was the limit.
In terms of the three shows as they exist now, you don’t need to have seen Citadel, necessarily, to appreciate or understand Citadel: Diana, nor Honey Bunny. There are elements that, if you’ve seen them or you see all of them, there are subtle nods where it’s fun, but they’re not requirements in the way that sometimes you feel like you’re missing out when you see something in the Marvel universe—where you feel like you might be missing a piece, or something like that.
De Angelis Reflects On Her Favorite Action Moment From Citadel: Diana
It Involves A Zip Line Over An Art Installation
Matilda, just from the first episode, it seemed like you got to do some really fun stuff in terms of action and spy stuff. What was the hardest and most fun action or stunt experience you had on set?
Matilda de Angelis: I think the most challenging one was a sequence that we shot in Sicily. you’re able to see a bit of it in the trailer. It’s a zip line…
Gina Gardini: …over a giant concrete maze that is actually part of an outdoor installation from 40 years ago, done by a famous artist named Burri. She spent six days doing it, and it’s so scary.
Matilda de Angelis: It is very scary.
Gina Gardini: You cannot have a fear of heights. But she went up and down that zip line. But you had fun doing it.
Citadel: Diana Filmmakers Drew Inspiration From Mussolini’s Italy To Create 2030 Milan
They Aimed To “Create A Near Future That Felt Within Reach”
It’s so cool that this takes place in the near future. What is the most exciting thing about that for both of you?
Gina Gardini: The most important thing was to create a near future that felt within reach, in the sense that [it’s] something very, very grounded, realistic, and something that—specifically for Italians, but beyond, potentially—you feel like could actually happen in five to 10 years. To create that, what was exciting and fun and challenging was how to do that. In the case of Italy it’s, again, looking to its past and a very specific period in its history, from the 1920s to the ’40s, [and] taking inspiration from that to create this near future.
It was a team effort, from production design, to costume, to hair, to wardrobe, to makeup, to music. We have these fantastic composers. It’s a music collective called Mokadelic that do very, very alternative electronic music, but they contaminated their score with instruments from the jazz age to always have that sense of the 1920s and ’30s Italy. It was cool. It was fun.
Matilda de Angelis: It was really fun. What was exciting for me was to actually live in that period. I work with imagination all the time, but sometimes I could look around myself and actually see myself in a different reality and that was, I think, very exciting for me while shooting the show.
Gardini & De Angelis Talk Bringing The World Of Citadel To Italy
The Spinoff Series Was “Made 100% By Italians”
What does it kind of mean for you to have this entire show set in Italy, made by Italian filmmakers? What is the most exciting thing that you think Italy has to offer for the world ofCitadel?
Gina Gardini: First of all, I mean, the pride in shooting a show that’s part of this enormous project, but purely through the lens of Italians, made 100% by Italians, and showing Italy in a way that’s sort of outside of the box. The fact that it’s set in Milan and in other places in Italy that aren’t as well-known I think is really, really exciting. Putting our stamp on a show that is going to have such a huge global opportunity to be seen is really fantastic.
Matilda de Angelis: I agree 100%. And for me, I’m such a huge fan of the Russo brothers and AGBO Productions in general, so it was a honor and a privilege for me to be chosen in a way by them, or at least approved by them.
Gina Gardini: There was no approval. It was like, “Run! Run and beg Matilda to do it!”
Matilda de Angelis: For me to be a part of something so big is so incredible. It’s still a dream.
About Citadel: Diana
Milan, 2030: Eight years ago, the independent global spy agency Citadel was destroyed by the powerful enemy syndicate, Manticore. Since then, Diana Cavalieri (Matilda De Angelis), an undercover Citadel agent, is alone, trapped behind enemy lines as a mole in Manticore. When she finally sees a way out and the chance to disappear forever, the only way to do so is trusting the most unexpected ally, Edo Zani (Lorenzo Cervasio), the heir of Manticore Italy and son of the head of the Italian organization, Ettore Zani (Maurizio Lombardi), who’s vying for leadership against the other European families.
Citadel: Diana
Cast
The sequel series to Prime Video’s 2022 spy thriller, Citadel: Diana follows a new cast of characters in the Citadel universe. Centered around the titular Diana, Matilda De Angelis stars as the new protagonist in the Italian branch of the organization.
