Prison Break is an American serial drama television series that premiered on the Fox network on August 29, 2005, and finished its fifth season on May 30, 2017. The series was simulcast on Global in Canada,[1] and broadcast in dozens of countries worldwide. Prison Break is produced by Adelstein-Parouse Productions, in association with Rat Television, Original Television and Twentieth Century Fox Television. The series revolves around two brothers: Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller) and Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell). In the first season, Lincoln is sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit, and Michael deliberately incarcerates himself to help him escape prison. Season two focuses on the manhunt of the prison escapees, season three revolves around Michael's breakout from a Panamanian jail, the fourth season unravels the criminal conspiracy that imprisoned Lincoln,[2] and the fifth season focuses on breaking Michael out of a prison in Yemen and uncovering the conspiracy that forced Michael to fake his death and change his identity.
A total of 90 episodes of Prison Break have been aired, in addition to three special making-of episodes. The first season aired from August 29, 2005 to May 15, 2006, with a four-month break after Thanksgiving. The second season, which premiered on August 21, 2006, had a similar schedule as the first, although it had a shorter break. After an eight-week hiatus, the second season resumed on January 22, 2007 before ending on April 2, 2007. The third season began on September 17, 2007, with an eight-episode run. The show's third season went on hiatus over the 2007 Christmas period because of the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike. It resumed on January 14, 2008, and the last five episodes of the season were aired. The fourth season, consisting of 22 episodes, began airing in September 2008, stopped in December 2008, and resumed on April 17, 2009. After being in development for several months, Fox announced in January 2016 that it had ordered a limited event series that would serve as a continuation to the original series. The season premiered on April 4, 2017, on Fox.[3]
The first five seasons of Prison Break have been released on DVD and Blu-ray in Regions 1, 2, and 4. Each DVD boxed set includes all of the broadcast episodes from that season, the associated special episode, commentary from cast and crew, and profiles of various parts of Prison Break, such as Fox River State Penitentiary or the tattoo.[4][5][6][7] Prison Break is also available online, including iTunes, Amazon Video, and Netflix.[8][9] After the premiere of the second season of Prison Break, Fox began online streaming of the prior week's episode, though it originally restricted viewing to the United States.[10]
Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
---|---|---|---|---|
First aired | Last aired | |||
1 | 22 | August 29, 2005 | May 15, 2006 | |
2 | 22 | August 21, 2006 | April 2, 2007 | |
3 | 13 | September 17, 2007 | February 18, 2008 | |
4 | 22 | September 1, 2008 | May 15, 2009 | |
The Final Break | May 27, 2009[a] | |||
5 | 9 | April 4, 2017 | May 30, 2017 |
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | U.S. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | "Pilot" | Brett Ratner | Paul Scheuring | August 29, 2005 | 1AKJ79 | 10.51[11] |
2 | 2 | "Allen" | Michael W. Watkins | Paul Scheuring | August 29, 2005 | 1AKJ01 | 10.51[11] |
3 | 3 | "Cell Test" | Brad Turner | Michael Pavone | September 5, 2005 | 1AKJ02 | 8.49[12] |
4 | 4 | "Cute Poison" | Matt Earl Beesley | Matt Olmstead | September 12, 2005 | 1AKJ03 | 9.15[13] |
5 | 5 | "English, Fitz or Percy" | Randall Zisk | Zack Estrin | September 19, 2005 | 1AKJ04 | 7.96[14] |
6 | 6 | "Riots, Drills and the Devil (Part 1)" | Robert Mandel | Nick Santora | September 26, 2005 | 1AKJ05 | 8.55[15] |
7 | 7 | "Riots, Drills and the Devil (Part 2)" | Vern Gillum | Karyn Usher | October 3, 2005 | 1AKJ06 | 9.48[16] |
8 | 8 | "The Old Head" | Jace Alexander | Monica Macer | October 24, 2005 | 1AKJ07 | 10.12[17] |
9 | 9 | "Tweener" | Matt Earl Beesley | Paul Scheuring | October 31, 2005 | 1AKJ08 | 9.01[18] |
10 | 10 | "Sleight of Hand" | Dwight H. Little | Nick Santora | November 7, 2005 | 1AKJ09 | 8.06[19] |
11 | 11 | "And Then There Were 7" | Jesús Salvador Treviño | Zack Estrin | November 14, 2005 | 1AKJ10 | 9.58[20] |
12 | 12 | "Odd Man Out" | Bobby Roth | Karyn Usher | November 21, 2005 | 1AKJ11 | 10.08[21] |
13 | 13 | "End of the Tunnel" | Sanford Bookstaver | Paul Scheuring | November 28, 2005 | 1AKJ12 | 12.18[22] |
14 | 14 | "The Rat" | Kevin Hooks | Matt Olmstead | March 20, 2006 | 1AKJ13 | 9.28[23] |
15 | 15 | "By the Skin and the Teeth" | Fred Gerber | Nick Santora | March 27, 2006 | 1AKJ14 | 10.07[24] |
16 | 16 | "Brother's Keeper" | Greg Yaitanes | Zack Estrin | April 3, 2006 | 1AKJ15 | 8.10[25] |
17 | 17 | "J-Cat" | Guy Ferland | Karyn Usher | April 10, 2006 | 1AKJ16 | 8.12[26] |
18 | 18 | "Bluff" | Jace Alexander | Nick Santora & Karyn Usher | April 17, 2006 | 1AKJ17 | 8.18[27] |
19 | 19 | "The Key" | Sergio Mimica-Gezzan | Story by : Paul Scheuring Teleplay by : Zack Estrin & Matt Olmstead | April 24, 2006 | 1AKJ18 | 8.63[28] |
20 | 20 | "Tonight" | Bobby Roth | Zack Estrin | May 1, 2006 | 1AKJ19 | 8.54[29] |
21 | 21 | "Go" | Dean White | Matt Olmstead | May 8, 2006 | 1AKJ20 | 9.13[30] |
22 | 22 | "Flight" | Kevin Hooks | Paul Scheuring | May 15, 2006 | 1AKJ21 | 10.24[31] |
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | U.S. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
23 | 1 | "Manhunt" | Kevin Hooks | Paul Scheuring | August 21, 2006 | 2AKJ01 | 9.37[32] |
24 | 2 | "Otis" | Bobby Roth | Matt Olmstead | August 28, 2006 | 2AKJ02 | 9.44[33] |
25 | 3 | "Scan" | Bryan Spicer | Zack Estrin | September 4, 2006 | 2AKJ03 | 9.29[34] |
26 | 4 | "First Down" | Bobby Roth | Nick Santora | September 11, 2006 | 2AKJ04 | 8.96[35] |
27 | 5 | "Map 1213" | Peter O'Fallon | Karyn Usher | September 18, 2006 | 2AKJ05 | 9.55[36] |
28 | 6 | "Subdivision" | Eric Laneuville | Monica Macer | September 25, 2006 | 2AKJ06 | 8.41[37] |
29 | 7 | "Buried" | Sergio Mimica-Gezzan | Seth Hoffman | October 2, 2006 | 2AKJ07 | 8.99[38] |
30 | 8 | "Dead Fall" | Vincent Misiano | Zack Estrin | October 23, 2006 | 2AKJ08 | 8.53[39] |
31 | 9 | "Unearthed" | Kevin Hooks | Nick Santora | October 30, 2006 | 2AKJ09 | 8.94[40] |
32 | 10 | "Rendezvous" | Dwight H. Little | Karyn Usher | November 6, 2006 | 2AKJ10 | 8.63[41] |
33 | 11 | "Bolshoi Booze" | Greg Yaitanes | Monica Macer & Seth Hoffman | November 13, 2006 | 2AKJ11 | 9.21[42] |
34 | 12 | "Disconnect" | Karen Gaviola | Nick Santora & Karyn Usher | November 20, 2006 | 2AKJ12 | 9.62[43] |
35 | 13 | "The Killing Box" | Bobby Roth | Zack Estrin | November 27, 2006 | 2AKJ13 | 9.62[44] |
36 | 14 | "John Doe" | Kevin Hooks | Matt Olmstead & Nick Santora | January 22, 2007 | 2AKJ14 | 9.86[45] |
37 | 15 | "The Message" | Bobby Roth | Zack Estrin & Karyn Usher | January 29, 2007 | 2AKJ15 | 9.90[46] |
38 | 16 | "Chicago" | Jesse Bochco | Matt Olmstead & Nick Santora | February 5, 2007 | 2AKJ16 | 10.12[47] |
39 | 17 | "Bad Blood" | Nelson McCormick | Paul Scheuring & Karyn Usher | February 19, 2007 | 2AKJ17 | 9.55[48] |
40 | 18 | "Wash" | Bobby Roth | Nick Santora | February 26, 2007 | 2AKJ18 | 9.42[49] |
41 | 19 | "Sweet Caroline" | Dwight H. Little | Karyn Usher | March 5, 2007 | 2AKJ19 | 9.72[50] |
42 | 20 | "Panama" | Vincent Misiano | Zack Estrin | March 19, 2007 | 2AKJ20 | 8.40[51] |
43 | 21 | "Fin Del Camino" | Bobby Roth | Matt Olmstead & Seth Hoffman | March 26, 2007 | 2AKJ21 | 8.24[52] |
44 | 22 | "Sona" | Kevin Hooks | Paul Scheuring | April 2, 2007 | 2AKJ22 | 8.12[53] |
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | U.S. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
45 | 1 | "Orientación" | Kevin Hooks | Paul Scheuring | September 17, 2007 | 3AKJ01 | 7.51[54] |
46 | 2 | "Fire/Water" | Bobby Roth | Matt Olmstead | September 24, 2007 | 3AKJ02 | 7.41[55] |
47 | 3 | "Call Waiting" | Milan Cheylov | Zack Estrin | October 1, 2007 | 3AKJ03 | 7.29[56] |
48 | 4 | "Good Fences" | Michael Switzer | Nick Santora | October 8, 2007 | 3AKJ04 | 7.35[57] |
49 | 5 | "Interference" | Karen Gaviola | Karyn Usher | October 22, 2007 | 3AKJ05 | 7.44[58] |
50 | 6 | "Photo Finish" | Kevin Hooks | Seth Hoffman | November 5, 2007 | 3AKJ06 | 7.69[59] |
51 | 7 | "Vamonos" | Vincent Misiano | Zack Estrin & Kalinda Vazquez | November 5, 2007 | 3AKJ07 | 8.00[59] |
52 | 8 | "Bang & Burn" | Bobby Roth | Christian Trokey & Nick Santora | November 12, 2007 | 3AKJ08 | 7.18[60] |
53 | 9 | "Boxed In" | Craig Ross, Jr. | Karyn Usher | January 14, 2008 | 3AKJ09 | 7.87[61] |
54 | 10 | "Dirt Nap" | Michael Switzer | Matt Olmstead & Seth Hoffman | January 21, 2008 | 3AKJ10 | 7.81[62] |
55 | 11 | "Under and Out" | Greg Yaitanes | Zack Estrin | February 4, 2008 | 3AKJ11 | 7.35[63] |
56 | 12 | "Hell or High Water" | Kevin Hooks | Nick Santora | February 11, 2008 | 3AKJ12 | 7.84[64] |
57 | 13 | "The Art of the Deal" | Nelson McCormick | Matt Olmstead & Seth Hoffman | February 18, 2008 | 3AKJ13 | 7.40[65] |
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | U.S. viewers (millions) | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
58 | 1 | "Scylla" | Kevin Hooks | Matt Olmstead | September 1, 2008 | 4AKJ01 | 6.53[66] | |||||
59 | 2 | "Breaking & Entering" | Bobby Roth | Zack Estrin | September 1, 2008 | 4AKJ02 | 6.53[66] | |||||
60 | 3 | "Shut Down" | Milan Cheylov | Nick Santora | September 8, 2008 | 4AKJ03 | 6.36[67] | |||||
61 | 4 | "Eagles & Angels" | Michael Switzer | Karyn Usher | September 15, 2008 | 4AKJ04 | 5.79[68] | |||||
62 | 5 | "Safe & Sound" | Karen Gaviola | Seth Hoffman | September 22, 2008 | 4AKJ05 | 5.84[69] | |||||
63 | 6 | "Blow Out" | Bryan Spicer | Kalinda Vazquez | September 29, 2008 | 4AKJ06 | 5.28[70] | |||||
64 | 7 | "Five the Hard Way" | Garry A. Brown | Christian Trokey | October 6, 2008 | 4AKJ07 | 5.37[71] | |||||
65 | 8 | "The Price" | Bobby Roth | Graham Roland | October 20, 2008 | 4AKJ08 | 5.45[72] | |||||
66 | 9 | "Greatness Achieved" | Jesse Bochco | Nick Santora | November 3, 2008 | 4AKJ09 | 5.23[73] | |||||
67 | 10 | "The Legend" | Dwight H. Little | Karyn Usher | November 10, 2008 | 4AKJ10 | 5.38[74] | |||||
68 | 11 | "Quiet Riot" | Kevin Hooks | Seth Hoffman | November 17, 2008 | 4AKJ11 | 5.52[75] | |||||
69 | 12 | "Selfless" | Michael Switzer | Kalinda Vazquez | November 24, 2008 | 4AKJ12 | 5.25[76] | |||||
70 | 13 | "Deal or No Deal" | Bobby Roth | Christian Trokey | December 1, 2008 | 4AKJ13 | 5.84[77] | |||||
71 | 14 | "Just Business" | Mark Helfrich | Graham Roland | December 8, 2008 | 4AKJ14 | 5.40[78] | |||||
72 | 15 | "Going Under" | Karen Gaviola | Zack Estrin | December 15, 2008 | 4AKJ15 | 5.37[79] | |||||
73 | 16 | "The Sunshine State" | Kevin Hooks | Matt Olmstead & Nicholas Wootton | December 22, 2008 | 4AKJ16 | 4.98[80] | |||||
74 | 17 | "The Mother Lode" | Jonathan Glassner | Seth Hoffman | April 17, 2009 | 4AKJ17 | 3.34[81] | |||||
75 | 18 | "VS." | Dwight H. Little | Christian Trokey & Kalinda Vazquez | April 24, 2009 | 4AKJ18 | 3.06[82] | |||||
76 | 19 | "S.O.B." | Garry A. Brown | Karyn Usher | May 1, 2009 | 4AKJ19 | 3.20[83] | |||||
77 | 20 | "Cowboys & Indians" | Milan Cheylov | Nick Santora | May 8, 2009 | 4AKJ20 | 2.99[84] | |||||
78 | 21 | "Rate of Exchange" | Bobby Roth | Zack Estrin | May 15, 2009 | 4AKJ21 | 3.32[85] | |||||
79 | 22 | "Killing Your Number" | Kevin Hooks | Matt Olmstead & Nicholas Wootton | May 15, 2009 | 4AKJ22 | 3.32[85] | |||||
Prison Break: The Final Break | ||||||||||||
80 | 23 | "The Old Ball and Chain" | Brad Turner | Story by : Christian Trokey Teleplay by : Nick Santora & Seth Hoffman | May 27, 2009 | (UK)4AKJ23 | N/A | |||||
81 | 24 | "Free" | Kevin Hooks | Story by : Kalinda Vazquez Teleplay by : Zack Estrin & Karyn Usher | May 27, 2009 | (UK)4AKJ24 | N/A |
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Prod. code | U.S. viewers (millions) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
82 | 1 | "Ogygia" | Nelson McCormick | Paul Scheuring | April 4, 2017 | 1AZM01 | 3.83[86] |
83 | 2 | "Kaniel Outis" | Maja Vrvilo | Paul Scheuring | April 11, 2017 | 1AZM02 | 3.18[87] |
84 | 3 | "The Liar" | Maja Vrvilo | Josh Goldin & Rachel Abramowitz | April 18, 2017 | 1AZM03 | 2.44[88] |
85 | 4 | "The Prisoner's Dilemma" | Guy Ferland | Michael Horowitz | April 25, 2017 | 1AZM04 | 2.75[89] |
86 | 5 | "Contingency" | Guy Ferland | Vaun Wilmott | May 2, 2017 | 1AZM05 | 2.35[90] |
87 | 6 | "Phaecia" | Kevin Tancharoen | Michael Horowitz | May 9, 2017 | 1AZM06 | 2.37[91] |
88 | 7 | "Wine Dark Sea" | Kevin Tancharoen | Vaun Wilmott | May 16, 2017 | 1AZM07 | 2.41[92] |
89 | 8 | "Progeny" | Nelson McCormick | Michael Horowitz | May 23, 2017 | 1AZM08 | 1.90[93] |
90 | 9 | "Behind the Eyes" | Nelson McCormick | Paul Scheuring | May 30, 2017 | 1AZM09 | 2.30[94] |
No. | Title | Narrated by | Original air date | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | "Behind the Walls" | Mark Thompson | October 11, 2005 | |
The first special episode recaps the first seven episodes of the first season. It also includes making-of footage, cast interviews and background information on the show and the main characters. In the United States and United Kingdom, this episode was shown after the seventh episode, "Riots, Drills and the Devil (Part 2)", while in Australia, a slightly edited version of this special aired on April 12, 2006 in between episodes 10 and 11. This episode was released on an exclusive DVD that could only be received at Target with the purchase of the Season 1 DVD in the United States.[95] | ||||
2 | "The Road to Freedom" | John Leader | January 8, 2007 | |
Aired prior to the fourteenth episode, the second special episode previews the remaining episodes of the season. It also features interviews with cast members Wentworth Miller, Dominic Purcell, Sarah Wayne Callies, William Fichtner, Wade Williams, Paul Adelstein, Robert Knepper and Silas Weir Mitchell. | ||||
3 | "Access All Areas" | Amanda Byram | September 23, 2007 | |
The third special episode was aired only on Sky1 in the United Kingdom. Like the other two special episodes, it focuses on the beginning of its season. It includes making-of footage and interviews with the cast, and also provides additional background information on the show and the new main characters. |
Graphs are unavailable due to technical issues. There is more info on Phabricator and on MediaWiki.org. |
Season | Episode number | ||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | ||
1 | 10.51 | 10.51 | 8.49 | 9.15 | 7.96 | 8.55 | 9.48 | 10.12 | 9.01 | 8.06 | 9.58 | 10.08 | 12.18 | 9.28 | 10.07 | 8.10 | 8.12 | 8.18 | 8.63 | 8.54 | 9.13 | 10.24 | |
2 | 9.37 | 9.44 | 9.29 | 8.96 | 9.55 | 8.41 | 8.99 | 8.53 | 8.94 | 8.63 | 9.21 | 9.62 | 9.62 | 9.86 | 9.90 | 10.12 | 9.55 | 9.42 | 9.72 | 8.40 | 8.24 | 8.12 | |
3 | 7.51 | 7.41 | 7.29 | 7.35 | 7.44 | 7.69 | 8.00 | 7.18 | 7.87 | 7.81 | 7.35 | 7.84 | 7.40 | – | |||||||||
4 | 6.53 | 6.53 | 6.36 | 5.79 | 5.84 | 5.28 | 5.37 | 5.45 | 5.23 | 5.38 | 5.52 | 5.25 | 5.84 | 5.40 | 5.37 | 4.98 | 3.34 | 3.06 | 3.20 | 2.99 | 3.32 | 3.32 | |
5 | 3.83 | 3.18 | 2.44 | 2.75 | 2.35 | 2.37 | 2.41 | 1.90 | 2.30 | – |