'Brilliant improviser, fully committed': Richard Madden can't stop praising PC

MUMBAI: After starring in the fan-favourite 'Game of Thrones', actor Richard Madden is set to portray the role of an elite spy in the upcoming global streaming series 'Citadel' in which he will be seen pulling off some adrenaline pumping action sequences.

The series has a pretty slick action that forms an integral part of the storytelling process. For Richard, the approach was "pretty new" to action sequences. What made it different was the fact that the overall treatment of the series is quite "fast paced," the actor told IANS.

He said in an interaction: "We wanted the audience to get hold of the characters as quickly as possible and as intimately as possible. The action is hardwired to the drama in the series and is an integral part of the storytelling because we play agents. Like for the first episode when my character of Mason and Priyanka Chopra's character of Nadia meet, when you see them together for the first time, the action choreography is like a dance."

He further mentioned that when he and Priyanka came together on screen, the action became their language to emote since beating the baddies is a part of KRA (Key Result Area) of a spy.

He shared with IANS: "They have a language when it comes to the fighting style as they do this together as a team. Although the technique is integral to any action scene we also infused the traits of the character and the drama to enhance the action."

Working with Priyanka has been a very fulfilling experience for Richard because she gives it all to the performance.

Describing PC as a co-star, Richard told IANS: "She has a beautiful screen presence, she's fully committed to her character, is very collaborative, instinctive and is a brilliant improviser on the sets. I believe in heavy preparations so, I brought that out in her and she brought the quick thinking to the table. So, it was not just collaborative but also enhancing for both of us in many ways."

Having worked in 'GoT' and 'Citadel' both being the streaming content pieces, Richard feels that working in the long-format medium is an absolute delight for film artistes as they have more time at their disposal and can explore a lot many things.

"We just don't have a longer screen time to tell a story but, we also get a larger cast to explore different layers of the storytelling, to explore each character and their backstories because we have hours to tell a story rather than just a film of 2 hours. Like when I worked in 'Game of Thrones', between seasons I could mull over the fact that how I could make things better in each season and with regards to my character's arc, and what new dimensions I could add to make it more engaging for the audience", he signed off.

'Citadel' premieres on Prime Video on April 28, 2023.