As Priyanka Chopra Jonas returns as the debonair spy Nadia in Citadel Season 2, we take look at how her Hollywood projects stack up against each other.
Key Points
- Priyanka Chopra Jonas is set to return in Citadel season two, reprising her role as Nadia Sinh.
- Her international career has seen a mix of high-profile projects, with some not matching the consistent quality of her best Hindi cinema work.
- Projects like Heads of State and The White Tiger stand out as her most acclaimed international work, showcasing her talent in strong ensemble casts and compelling narratives.
Priyanka Chopra Jonas is set to return as secret agent Nadia Sinh in the second season of Citadel after a gap of three years.
The new season, streaming on May 6 on Amazon Prime Video, reunites her with co-stars Richard Madden and Stanley Tucci. While not a critical darling, Citadel is very important for Priyanka’s fanbase as it marks her second major live-action international series after her career-defining turn in Quantico.
While PeeCee still returns to Indian cinema occasionally (like playing the female lead in S S Rajamouli’s upcoming magnum opus, Varanasi), her post-Quantico trajectory has largely been centred in Hollywood.
But how do her international projects stack up in terms of quality, especially when compared to her Bollywood run, which includes acclaimed entertainers and major box office successes like Dostana, Fashion, Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, Don, Barfi! and Bajirao Mastani?
To be honest, while she has been part of several high-profile international projects, many of them have not matched the consistent quality of her best work in Hindi cinema.
This is not undermining Priyanka’s amazing dedication and hunger for work, but we wish she should have gotten the material that keeps matching her talent.
To throw a retrospect at her global career, Sreeju Sudhakaran ranks Priyanka Chopra’s international films and shows from worst to best, excluding cameos.
12. Love Again (2023)
Directed by James C Strouse, this romantic drama features Priyanka as a children’s book author grieving the loss of her fiancé, who unexpectedly forms a ‘cosmic’ connection with a stranger.
A remake of the German film SMS für Dich, it also drew attention for featuring singer Celine Dion as herself.
Priyanka is adequate in the role, but the film struggles to get the tone right in balancing humour and drama. The direction feels flat, most performances were either dull or plain awkward, and the chemistry between Priyanka and Sam Heughan lacks any spark. Even hubby Nick Jonas’ comic cameo feels more like a forced meta inclusion than a meaningful addition.
11. Baywatch (2017)
The big-screen reboot of Baywatch seems to misunderstand what made the original so popular (watch FRIENDS to know why Chandler and Joey bonded over the show… ahem… Yasmine Bleeth) and why it belonged to a very specific era.
Instead, the film turns into a buddy comedy led by Dwayne Johnson and Zac Efron, with the lifeguard premise reduced to a thin backdrop for their largely unfunny antics.
Priyanka takes on the role of the antagonist, Victoria Leeds, a shady businesswoman with questionable dealings. On paper, the part offers scope for the actress to enter her Aitraaz-mode, but the narrative barely invests in her character.
With the focus firmly on Johnson and Efron trading barbs, her villainy never quite lands with the impact it promises.
10. Planes (2013)
Not many realise that it wasn’t Quantico, but this 2013 animated film that marked Priyanka’s first Hollywood project. If you do not remember it, that is hardly surprising, as it is not among Walt Disney Pictures’ more memorable outings, despite being a spin-off of the successful Cars franchise.
Planes follows Dusty, a crop-duster plane aspiring to compete in a global air race. Priyanka voices Ishani, the Indian champion plane who also serves as the protagonist’s love interest.
For us desi viewers, the most striking moment is a sequence where the two planes romance each other while flying over the Taj Mahal. Beyond that, Planes remains a largely forgettable affair, appealing mainly to younger audiences, while also drawing criticism for leaning on cultural stereotypes.
9. We Can Be Heroes (2020)
Directed by Robert Rodriguez, We Can Be Heroes functions as a loose legacy sequel to The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl. However, viewers expecting continuity with the earlier film may be disappointed, as most of the original characters barely feature (Taylor Lautner does not even reprise his role).
Taken on its own terms, this Netflix film boasts an interesting ensemble, including Pedro Pascal, Boyd Holbrook, Christian Slater and Sung Kang, though the younger cast understandably takes centrestage.
Priyanka appears in a quasi-antagonistic role and delivers a performance that has a slightly hammy tone which fits the film’s sensibility.
That said, inconsistent visual effects and humour aimed largely at younger audiences make it an uneven watch. While it has its moments, We Can Be Heroes ultimately lands as a passable entry that has since faded into the endless annals of the vast Netflix content.
8. The Matrix Resurrections (2021)
What a heartbreaking disappointment this turned out to be!
The Matrix trilogy remains one of the most beloved franchises, and it had effectively concluded Neo’s arc despite the mixed reception to the third film.
A fourth instalment felt unnecessary, yet Warner Bros pushed ahead with a legacy sequel that brought back Lana Wachowski to direct, along with Keanu Reeves and Carrie-Anne Moss reprising their roles.
The film leans heavily into meta commentary, with pointed jabs at corporate pressure and its own existence. However, amid all the fourth-wall breaks and Easter eggs, it fails to deliver a compelling narrative that justifies Neo’s return or meaningfully engages its ensemble.
The same applies to Priyanka, who plays Sati, now grown up from the child programme seen in The Matrix Revolutions. Despite the apparent importance of the role, it offers her very little to do, which feels like a missed opportunity and a major heartbreak for her Indian fans who were so excited to see her in a Matrix movie.
7. Citadel (2023-Present)
Citadel had all the makings of a major career milestone for Priyanka Chopra. A slick, high-budget spy thriller backed by The Russo Brothers, the series was envisioned as a global franchise, with Amazon Prime Video expanding it into an Indian instalment starring Varun Dhawan and Samantha Ruth Prabhu, as well as an Italian spin-off.
Unfortunately, neither the main series nor its extensions have quite connected with audiences so far.
While Priyanka and Richard Madden received praise for their performances and chemistry, the show itself offers little that feels fresh. Its screenplay leans heavily on familiar spy-thriller tropes, resulting in something that looks ambitious and stylish but feels hollow at its core.
There is still hope that the upcoming season can course-correct and revive interest in the franchise.
6. Quantico (2015-2018)
For Priyanka’s first major foray into Hollywood, Quantico felt like the right move. It positioned her as the face of a high-profile show, gave her the visibility she needed, and introduced her to a wider Western audience.
The first season was engaging enough, with its mix of betrayals and tangled relationships within the FBI training academy, paired with a future timeline that added intrigue.
But as the series progressed, it became increasingly evident that the writing could not sustain its own ambition. Despite some entertaining, if over-the-top twists, the narrative began to feel stretched and incoherent, and the show plugged in too many characters than it could tackle.
Priyanka looked confident and charismatic in the lead, carrying the show as best as she could until the weak writing began to weigh her down. The dual timeline structure, initially compelling, lost its purpose by the end of the first season and was eventually abandoned midway through the second.
Quantico was cancelled after three seasons due to declining viewership, but it did earn Priyanka the distinction of being the first South Asian actor to win a People’s Choice Award.
5. Isn’t It Romantic (2019)=
Isn’t It Romantic is the kind of romcom you watch once, mildly enjoy, and then forget soon after.
Starring Rebel Wilson, the film follows Natalie, a low-confidence woman who, after a minor accident, finds herself trapped inside a glossy, PG-13 romantic comedy world where she is suddenly the protagonist. The irony, of course, is that she despises romcoms in real life.
Priyanka plays Isabella, a model in the real world and a yoga ambassador in Natalie’s fantasy version, who gets engaged to Natalie’s best friend, played by Adam DeVine.
While it is a supporting role, Priyanka brings a certain glamour and poise that suits the part well. That said, the film largely rests on the comic chemistry between Wilson and DeVine, and while it offers a few enjoyable moments, it remains a passable entertainer that does not linger for long.
4. A Kid Like Jake (2018)
A Kid Like Jake centres on two parents trying to help their gender non-conforming kindergarten child navigate an educational system that embraces individuality.
Based on a stage play of the same name, the film stars Jim Parsons and Claire Danes as the parents, with Priyanka playing their friend, a single mother.
The film can feel cloying at times and in need of a sturdier hand in handling the more dramatic scenes, but it approaches its core theme with sensitivity and a grounded realism.
Parsons and Danes are effective in the lead roles, particularly in the emotionally charged third act. Priyanka, despite limited screen time, delivers a decent performance in a character that has subtle shades of grey.
3. The Bluff (2026)
In The Bluff, Priyanka plays a former pirate and fiercely protective mother who must confront her past when an old lover and nemesis, played by Karl Urban, resurfaces to hunt her down.
On paper, it is a premise that promises plenty of excitement, and to an extent, it delivers, especially for fans of the actress.
Priyanka commands attention in the action sequences, handling the physicality of the role with conviction.
But the film is let down by a mechanical narrative, a predictable screenplay and a rather bland visual treatment. Key supporting characters, including the protagonist’s husband and the villain’s lieutenant, feel underwritten.
Even with its bloody bursts of violence and action, the film lacks the distinct flair needed to stand out in an era dominated by stylised action benchmarks like John Wick.
2. Heads of State (2025)
Heads of State is, by some distance, Priyanka’s most entertaining Hollywood outing and one that also earned favourable reviews from critics.
The action-comedy follows the US President (John Cena) and the UK Prime Minister (Idris Elba), who are thrust into a dangerous terrorist crisis and are forced to rely on each other to survive, despite their mutual dislike.
The film thrives on the comedic chemistry between Cena and Elba, while also delivering slick, engaging action set pieces, making it an effective crowd-pleasing entertainer.
Priyanka plays the female lead, a rogue MI6 agent with a romantic history with the UK PM. She is terrific in the role, holding her own and often stealing scenes with her screen presence, particularly in the action sequences, even if a body double is noticeable in a few moments.
1. The White Tiger (2021)
The White Tiger carries a certain irony, as Priyanka’s finest ‘international’ project is also deeply rooted in Indian realities.
Adapted from Aravind Adiga’s acclaimed novel of the same name, the film stars Adarsh Gourav as an underprivileged chauffeur whose ambitions collide with the harsh truths of class divide and systemic inequality.
Directed by Ramin Bahrani, the film is a dark, unsettling examination of social inequality, elevated by strong performances across the board.
Gourav is exceptional in the lead role that earned him significant global attention, paving the way for American projects like Extrapolations and Alien: Earth. Priyanka plays the US-returned wife of his employer (Rajkummar Rao), a character who shows flashes of empathy but in the end, she is also complicit in the skewered power structure that victimises the poor.
The movie earned an Oscar nomination for Best Adapted screenplay at the 93rd Academy Awards though it lost to The Father.
Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff
