A total of ten actors received star billing in the first season, with numerous supporting roles. Filming took place mostly in and around the Chicago area; Fox River was represented by Joliet Prison, which had closed in 2002. Critical reviews of the first season were generally favorable. The first season was released on DVD in Region One as a six-disc boxed set under the title of Prison Break: Season One on August 8, 2006.
The season was produced by Adelstein-Parouse Productions, in association with Original Television and 20th Century Fox Television. The executive producers were creator Paul Scheuring, Marty Adelstein, Neal H. Moritz, Dawn Parouse, Brett Ratner and Matt Olmstead.[22] The staff writers were Scheuring, co-executive producers Nick Santora and Zack Estrin, supervising producer Karyn Usher and Olmstead.[22] The regular director throughout the season was Bobby Roth; additional directors were Jace Alexander, Matt Earl Beesley and Dwight H. Little.[22] Its incidental music was composed by Ramin Djawadi.[22]
Most of the first season of the series was filmed on location in and around Chicago.[23][24] After it was closed down in 2002, Joliet Prison became the set of Prison Break in 2005, standing in as Fox River State Penitentiary on screen. Scenes set in Lincoln's cell, the infirmary and the prison yard were all shot on location at the prison.[25] Lincoln's cell is the same one in which John Wayne Gacy was incarcerated. Most of the production crew refused to enter the cell, thinking that it was haunted.[23] Other sets were built at the prison, including the cell blocks that housed the general prison population; these blocks had three tiers of cells (as opposed to the real cell block's two) and had cells much larger than real cells to allow more space for the actors and cameras.[25] Exterior scenes were filmed in areas around Chicago, Woodstock, and Joliet in Illinois. Other locations included O'Hare International Airport in Chicago and Toronto, Ontario in Canada. Prison Break spent $2 million per episode in the state of Illinois, which cost them a total of $24 million in 2005.[23]
The two-hour pilot episode garnered approximately 10.5 million viewers, giving Fox its "best summertime Monday numbers since episodes of Melrose Place and Ally McBeal aired there in September 1998."[31] The show's first season attracted an average audience of 10 million viewers each week, with "End of the Tunnel" reaching 12 million viewers, and led the debuts of television in the 2005 American fall season.[32] Prison Break was originally planned for a 13-episode run, but was extended to include an extra nine episodes due to its popularity.[33]
Season 1 contains a total of 22 episodes which were originally broadcast in the United States from August 29, 2005 to May 15, 2006. The plot revolves around the plan of Michael Scofield to break his brother, Lincoln Burrows, out of prison. It covers approximately six weeks of the characters' lives (from April 11th to May 27th) - the entire length of Michael's stay at Fox River State Penitentiary. An average of 9.2 million viewers was recorded for the season.
Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) is accused of the murder of Terrence Steadman, who is the brother of the female Vice President of the United States. With strong evidence supporting the charges of first degree murder and aggravated discharge of a firearm against him, Lincoln is sentenced to death and is sent to Fox River State Penitentiary to await his execution. Lincoln's brother, Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller), is convinced of Lincoln's innocence and hatches an escape plan. After installing himself at Fox River, time works against Michael as he must overcome various obstacles and make the right connections among the inmates and prison staff to be successful in breaking out his brother.The Brothers are aided by Veronica Donovan (Robin Tunney), who begins to investigate the conspiracy that put Lincoln in jail. However, they are hindered by covert agents, who belong to an organization known as "The Company". As the season goes on Michael is successful in recruiting other inmates into his escape plan. When the season comes to and end The Brothers and the other inmates break out of Fox River.
Prison Break season 1 episode 22 found the gang on the run following their breakout. The first season of Prison Break was a highly enjoyable thriller that followed Michael (Wentworth Miller, DC's Legends Of Tomorrow) as he got himself arrested and sent to a prison with the intent of breaking out his brother Lincoln (Dominic Purcell). While the first season received mostly positive reviews, the show had an inbuilt issue - the concept itself. Once the Scofield's broke out of prison, it was pretty much a countdown until they were caught and sent to another prison, and the cycle would repeat.
This is one reason later seasons of Prison Break would be received less warmly, with various conspiracies and convoluted subplots introduced to pad out seasons. The events of later series became increasingly ludicrous too, such as Sarah Wayne Callies' (The Walking Dead) Sara Tancredi being decapitated in season 3 following a contract dispute - only for season 4 to retcon this and reveal she was alive. The original show came to an end with TV movie Prison Break: The Final Break, which saw Michael sacrifice himself to save his family. This was retconned once again when the show was revived in 2017, which revealed Michael was somehow alive and Lincoln set out to find him.
While some of its later seasons may have been disappointing, Prison Break will always remain a guilty pleasure. It reached its peak with the last few episodes of season 1, where the would-be escapees are forced to break out early due to permanently angry guard Bellick almost rumbling their plan. Prison Break season 1 episode 22 "Flight" takes place in the immediate aftermath of Michael, Lincoln and the six other prisoners who made it out of Fox River State Penitentiary having to flee.
While Michael may be good at planning, the Prison Break season 1 finale finds him and the others winging it a lot of the time. They first waste time hiding in a ditch before making a run for a van sent by Abruzzi's (Peter Stormare, John Wick: Chapter 2) crew. Hateful old T-Bag handcuffs himself to Michael to protect himself from Abruzzi's wrath, but this plan doesn't go so well when the latter cuts off his hand with an ax; T-Bag then flees on his own with his severed hand.
After numerous roadblocks - some literal - Prison Break season 1 episode 22 finds the gang finally reach the airstrip. Of course, they arrive in time to see it taking off and with police cars approaching, the episode ends with them running into a field. A subplot also sees Scofield lawyer Veronica (Robin Tunney, End Of Days) discovering the location of Terrence Steadman, the man Lincoln was accused of murdering who is being hidden by The Company. All in all, Prison Break season 1 episode 22 was an intense finale, though it feels like the characters could have planned ahead a little more to make their escape smoother.
It starred Dominic Purcell, Wentworth Miller, Robin Tunney, Peter Stormare, and Amaury Nolasco and told the story (multiple times) of a pair of brothers attempting to break out of a high-security prison.
Special Agent Daniel Hale (Danny McCarthy) carries a Generation 2 Glock 19 pistol during the first season. He uses it to shoot the escaping Leticia in the leg in Season 1's "Cell Test" (S1E03), and to kill LJ's mother "The Old Head" (S1E08). Bellick (Wade Williams) retrieves a Glock 19 from his safe but he never uses it in "Riots, Drills and the Devil: Part 1" (S1E06). One of Abruzzi's men kills Nick and his father with a Glock 19 in "Go" (S1E21).
In "Allen" (S1E02), a Fox River prison guard is seen patrolling with an M4A1 Carbine when Michael meets T-Bag at the yard. M4A1's are also seen during the riot. Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin (Rockmond Dunbar) is seen with an M4A1 in a flashback to his US Army days in Iraq in "Brother's Keeper" (S1E16).
Numerous Mossberg 500 Persuader shotguns are seen at the prison armory when the guards are responding to the riot in "Riots, Drills and the Devil: Part 1" (S1E06). Corrections Officer Keith Stolte (Christian Stolte) points a Mossberg 500 at Michael and the others when they enter a restricted area in "The Old Head" (S1E08). In "The Key" (S1E19), Bellick (Wade Williams) is holding a Mossberg 500 when he is apprehending Lincoln. Several guards are armed with Mossbergs in "Go" (S1E21) and "Flight" (S1E22), when they capture the escaping Sanchez.
At the Television Critics Association winter press tour in Pasadena, California, following a recent joint panel for The Flash and Arrow, Miller and Purcell sat down with BuzzFeed News to look back on the four seasons they spent behind (fictional) bars. They also talked about the hard lessons they learned about typecasting, how they came to love their inextricable association with those characters, what it felt like to work together again, and why we may not have seen the last of Michael Scofield and Lincoln Burrows just yet.
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