49 Explosive Prison Break Facts That You Had No Idea About

'Prison Break' is an American television drama series created by Paul Scheuring.

It is the story of two brothers, Lincoln Burrows and Michael Scofield. Scofield tries to help his brother Lincoln escape prison as he has been sentenced to death for a crime he has not committed.

This drama series is said to be among the most popular series of all time. There are many video games and short phone videos that have been inspired by this drama series.

Fox was sued by Donald and Robert Hughes for basing this story on their life. However, the lawsuit failed. This was the first TV series to be released on Blu-ray.

Look out for facts about this hugely popular and hit television show throughout this article.

Theme Of Prison Break

Read on to discover amazing facts about the theme of 'Prison Break'.

The theme music for 'Prison Break' was composed by Ramin Djawadi.

In 2006, a remix version was released as a single by Fox Music and it was called 'Prison Break Theme' (Ferry Costen Breakout Mix).

The theme music for 'Prison Break' won the 2006 Primetime Emmy Award for 'Outstanding Main Title Theme Music'.

To make the show more appealing to local audiences in Europe, the theme music was replaced with a song by French rapper, Faf Large.

Seasons Of Prison Break

Read on to learn some interesting facts about the seasons of 'Prison Break'.

'Prison Break' is comprised of five seasons and the last episode of the fifth season was aired on May 30, 2017.

In season one, Lincoln Burrows is sentenced to death and sent to Fox River State Penitentiary after he is accused of murdering the brother of the Vice President of the United States.

Lincoln's brother Michael Scofield believes his brother to be innocent and devises an escape plan.

Scofield was helped by his friend Veronica Donovan.

The brothers and six inmates escape at the end of the season. They come to be known as the Fox River Eight.

A cell that features in season one was once occupied by serial killer John Wayne Gacy.

The show was supposed to end after season one but it was so popular that it kept getting extended.

Season two follows these fugitives as they journey across the country.

By the end of the second season, most of the escapees are recaptured or killed.

Although Lincoln and Michael arrive in Panama, they are arrested there.

Joliet Correctional Center in Illinois, a real prison that closed in February 2002, was used to shoot season one and a few episodes of season two.

Season three follows their time in Panamanian prison and how they manage to escape from there.

The character played by Sarah Wayne Callies was killed off in season three when she was pregnant. However, as she was so popular she was brought back in season four.

This season was affected by a writer's strike and had only 13 episodes.

Sona Prison of this season was based on the true story of Carandiru Penitentiary in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Season four deals with the takedown of The Company, an organization that framed Lincoln for murder in season one to take revenge on his father.

In the fourth season, the audience finally gets to know Michael's date of birth as his tombstone reveals that he was born on August 10, 1974.

The iconic tattoo that Michael Scofield has, which was the blueprint of the prison, was written to be surgically removed in season four. This was a huge relief for the actor and the makeup artists!

Season five was a limited series sequel to the original 'Prison Break' series.

Dominic Purcell was seriously injured while filming season five. He needed 150 stitches to repair a head injury and broken nose after an iron bar fell on him.

If you actually wanted to get Michael Scofield's tattoo, it would take four years and cost $20,000.

Cast And Characters Of Prison Break

Here are some interesting facts about the main crew members and the characteristics of this series.

Dominic Purcell starred as Lincoln Burrows, a high school drop-out. Burrows is falsely convicted of the murder of the brother of the Vice President of the United States, Terence Steadman.

The producers couldn't decide between actors Johnny Messner and Eric Dane to play Lincoln and then Dominic Purcell bagged the role.

Wentworth Miller was cast as Michael Scofield, who is another main character in this series.

He and Burrows are brothers, however, he uses his mother's maiden name.

He tried to save his brother's life by devising a plan to get him out of prison.

The tattoo on Wentworth Miller took makeup artists 4.5 hours to apply.

Amaury Nolasco played the part of Fernando Sucre, who befriends Scofield at Fox River State Penitentiary where they are cellmates.

Miller got this role just a week before the start of filming.

Miller came to the attention of the producers of this series after he auditioned for a role in the Superman movie, 'Flyby'.

Robert Knepper appeared as Theodore 'T-Bag' Bagwell in all seasons of 'Prison Break'.

Some of the characters on the show such as Lincoln Burrows, Benjamin Miles 'C-Note' Franklin, and Theodore 'T-Bag' Bagwell were named after famous American presidents Abraham Lincoln, Benjamin Franklin, and Theodore Roosevelt.

The first four seasons of 'Prison Break' had 17 regular cast members, however, only two were never jailed, Veronica Donovan and Sofia Lugo.

Stacy Keach, who plays Warden Pope, spent time in a British prison on a drugs charge in the '80s.

Lane Garrison who played David 'Tweener' Apolskis went to jail in 2007 for a traffic accident. He spent 40 months in prison.

Was 'Prison Break' successful?

'Prison Break' was a well-loved show. Find out all about it here.

The show first aired on August 29, 2005. It was an immediate hit with 10.5 million viewers tuning in to watch it.

Critic reviews of the show were also very favorable and positive.

It was listed among the best shows of that year.

This immensely successful series had an average of 9.2 million viewers per week for the first season.

The show was first turned down by Fox network as they were concerned about the storyline.

This show has been banned in some prisons around the world as it might help prisoners with thoughts and ideas of an escape.

This show was a big hit with audiences not just in the United States but all around the world.

This show was so popular worldwide that it was remade in Russia, although many scenes and dialogues were copied.

This series has always received strong audience ratings. It has also been nominated for many prestigious awards including the 2005 Golden Globe Award for 'Best Television Series Drama'.

It won the People's Choice Award for 'Favorite New TV Drama' in 2006.

FAQs

Is 'Prison Break' a true story?

Two brothers, Robert and Donald Hughes claimed that the story was based on their life. In 1964, Donald helped his brother Robert escape from a juvenile detention center. They lived as fugitives for four years and claimed that they sent a story of their experience to Fox studios who rejected the project.

Is 'Prison Break' on Netflix?

This show is available on Netflix in the UK, Hong Kong, and Canada. However, it is not available in the United States and Australia.

Is 'Prison Break' finished?

The series ended with the fifth season. The last episode of this nine-episode season aired on May 30, 2017.

Why is 'Prison Break' famous?

This series was famous and popular as it was very addictive. Each episode had a set of events that were extremely engrossing and you had to watch all the episodes to make sense of the story.

How long is 'Prison Break'?

This television series is comprised of five seasons that have about 20-25 episodes. An episode is about 45 minutes long. There were many spin-offs of this huge hit including 'Prison Break: Proof Of Innocence' and 'Prison Break: Visitations'. However, none were as successful as the series itself.