Alexander Mahone
Encyclopedia
Alexander "Alex" Mahone is a fictional character
portrayed by William Fichtner
in the American television series Prison Break
. The series revolves around two brothers: one who has been sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit and his younger sibling, a genius who devises an elaborate plan to help him escape prison. Mahone is introduced in the premiere of the second season
as a special agent in the Federal Bureau of Investigation
, specializing in manhunts for escaped prisoners for 14 years.
When the protagonist of the series, Michael Scofield
(Wentworth Miller
), successfully orchestrates the escape of eight prisoners from Fox River State Penitentiary
, Mahone is assigned to spearhead the task force assembled to recapture the fugitives and manages to capture four of them. However, he is arrested in Panama
and imprisoned in Penitenciaría Federal de Sona
in the second-season finale. Mahone manages to escape, and is coerced into taking down the Company
, a secret group of multinational
s which exerts an influence on the White House
. An assassin is hired by the Company to murder his son, and Mahone spends the majority of season four
seeking revenge.
The writers created Mahone's character in the second season so that there would be a fugitive pursuer who was not corrupt. When the writers saw that the number of antagonists was increasing, they decided to make him the alter ego of Scofield. The writers try to let Mahone inhabit a gray area, shifting the audience's sympathy for the character. Fichtner, attracted to the potential of the character, was cast as Mahone just one day before filming began for the second season; he signed on for only two seasons, but was convinced to appear in a third.
He marries a woman named Pamela (Callie Thorne
) and they have a son, Cameron. The marriage lasts for 15 years until Mahone abruptly ends it without explanation, ordering his family out of the house.
Before separating from his wife Mahone pursues Oscar Shales, a murderer whom he struggles to capture; it is revealed that Mahone killed Shales and buried the body in his backyard. Fearful that his wife would discover his secret, he cuts her out of his life. Mahone is plagued with visions of Shales, which cause him to self-medicate with prescription drugs.
, but they manage to escape. Mahone continues to pursue Michael and his brother Lincoln Burrows
(Dominic Purcell), who are able to avoid him on several occasions. While investigating a car explosion Mahone is shown to have a drug problem, swallowing pills concealed in a pen.
Mahone eventually tracks down John Abruzzi (Peter Stormare
) and David "Tweener" Apolskis (Lane Garrison
). Mahone orders his men to shoot Abruzzi to death when he fails to surrender, and later murders Tweener in cold blood. When he returns to his office, Mahone is questioned by Internal Affairs
Agent Richard Sullins (Kim Coates
) about their suspicious deaths.
It is revealed that Mahone is being blackmailed by Paul Kellerman
(Paul Adelstein
), a Secret Service agent forced to work for the Company. Kellerman threatens to reveal that Mahone killed Shales, and forces him to kill all the escapees in exchange for his silence. Although hesitant, Mahone agrees when an operative of the Company, Agent Kim (Reggie Lee
), threatens to murder his family. Mahone continues his hunt for the remaining six escapees but is betrayed and shot by Kellerman, who transfers his allegiance to the brothers. He survives and decides to stop chasing the escapees, but is forced to resume his search when his son is injured in a car accident orchestrated by one of Kim's agents. Before returning to work, he murders the agent who arranged the accident. Mahone returns to his FBI field office, where he is informed by Agent Wheeler (Jason Davis
) that Internal Affairs is investigating him.
When Charles "Haywire" Patoshik (Silas Weir Mitchell
) murders a civilian, Mahone asks Brad Bellick
(Wade Williams
) (former captain of correctional officers at Fox River) to help him find Haywire. Bellick finds Haywire, chasing him up a grain mill; Mahone climbs the mill and talks Haywire into committing suicide.
Mahone's next target, Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin
(Rockmond Dunbar
), narrowly evades him; C-Note soon offers to turn himself in, however, if his wife and child are cared for. C-Note is taken to jail, and Mahone tells him to commit suicide in order to guarantee the protection of his family. C-Note attempts suicide, but is rescued by the guards. Sullins makes a deal with him, and promises to release him if he testifies against Mahone.
Because he is unable to capture Michael, Mahone orders Agent Lang (Barbara Eve Harris
) to follow Michael's girlfriend Sara Tancredi
(Sarah Wayne Callies
). Mahone's sanity begins to unravel from his determination to catch Michael and Lincoln, and from his benzodiazepine
addiction. Michael and Lincoln travel to Panama, where Mahone lures them into a trap by impersonating fellow escapee Fernando Sucre
(Amaury Nolasco
). He captures Lincoln and contacts Michael, ordering him to surrender Charles Westmoreland's (Muse Watson
) five million dollars and his boat, the Christina Rose. Michael plants drugs on the Christina Rose, which he gives to Mahone. After an attempt to kill Kim, Mahone takes the boat and leaves; however, he is arrested on drug-possession charges. Mahone is taken to Sona along with Michael, Bellick and Fox River escapee Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell (Robert Knepper
).
) (a prisoner who rules Sona and its residents). When Mahone learns about the bounty placed on fellow inmate James Whistler (Chris Vance
), he manages to find him and deliver him to Lechero.
Mahone begins to suffer from drug withdrawal and is informed by his state-appointed lawyer that his trial is almost a full year away. When Whistler realizes that Michael is not entirely on his side, he forms an alliance with Mahone. Mahone deduces that Michael is planning to break Whistler out of the prison, and Michael eventually agrees to let him join the escape. After he begins hallucinating about Haywire, Mahone accepts heroin from T-Bag to calm himself.
Agent Lang visits Mahone and offers him a deal: eight years in a St. Louis prison in exchange for testifying against the government in the Lincoln Burrows conspiracy, or multiple homicide charges if he does not cooperate. Mahone eventually accepts the offer and confesses to Lang that he killed Shales, and that guilt made him turn to drugs. Because he is unable to maintain his composure while testifying, Mahone's testimony is dismissed, and Lang is forced to return Mahone to Sona.
Mahone (now rehabilitated) approaches Whistler and Michael and rejoins the escape. He is informed that their escape route (a tunnel leading to the edge of the prison) is almost complete, and that they will break out of Sona that night. Michael, Whistler, Mahone and fellow inmate McGrady (Carlo Alban
) manage to escape; Lechero, T-Bag and Bellick are caught by the Sona guards.
Lincoln wants to shoot Mahone in revenge for killing his father, but Whistler escapes from Lincoln's custody and Lincoln is forced to chase him. Mahone takes advantage of the situation and flees, eventually making his way to a bar.
Mahone is approached by Whistler, who offers him a job in the Company with him and operative Gretchen Morgan (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe
). Mahone warns Whistler that Gretchen is the "weak link", and that Michael will eventually hunt them down if Gretchen has indeed killed Sara.
), who takes the card.
Mahone returns to his family home to find his son has been murdered and since he is a wanted criminal, he is arrested by the police. Mahone is contacted by Agent Don Self (Michael Rapaport
), a Homeland Security
agent who was working with Whistler to take down the Company. He offers Mahone freedom if he joins an unofficial operation to recover Scylla from the Company. Mahone accepts, learning that other members of the operation are Michael, Lincoln, Sara, Bellick, Sucre and computer hacker and identity thief Roland Glenn (James Hiroyuki Liao
). The group devises a plan to regain the card, which succeeds. However, they learn that Scylla is actually made up of six cards held by different members of the Company. The group continues to look for the other cards, while Mahone asks Lang to find out who killed his son.
Mahone obtains a picture of Wyatt and meets with his estranged wife Pam, who makes him promise to hunt down and kill Wyatt. When Wyatt is captured Mahone tortures him, forcing him to apologize to his wife over the phone. He ties a cinderblock to Wyatt's wrists, and drowns him in the ocean. The group manages to complete Scylla, and Lincoln absolves Mahone for his role in his father's death. However, Self betrays the team and steals Scylla, forcing them to be fugitives once again.
While the others hunt Self, Mahone meets with Lang and asks for help. Lang calls Wheeler to help Mahone; however, Wheeler lies to Mahone about a meeting with the Attorney General and arrests him. While transporting Mahone to the airport, Lang allows him to escape and lies to Wheeler about the direction in which he has fled. Mahone returns to help Lincoln, Self, T-Bag and Gretchen retrieve Scylla. When Gretchen is shot while trying to double-cross the team, Mahone and the others leave her for the authorities.
After realizing Lincoln's mother (Christina Scofield) took Scylla, Mahone helps him stop her and retrieve Scylla after the Company threatens him with a photo of Pam. He later saves Lincoln from being assassinated by one of Christina's snipers. Mahone identifies one of the people who has connections with Christina, Vincent Sandinsky. However, the team does not find any connections with him and he believes his story (which is a lie). They catch him in the lie; after Krantz arrives to take charge they interrogate Sandinsky, who reveals some information about a hotel room. He and the team track a car rental slip and after more digging, eventually find the car (with their passports) outside the energy conference; they realize it is a set-up. It is revealed that Christina is setting the team up for the assassination of the Indian Prime Minister's son (who was thought to have brought Scylla). After the assassination of Naveen Banarjee, Mahone and Self are outside the hotel on the ohone with Scofield and Burrows. The brothers tell Mahone to go the apartment where Sara is holding Christina hostage, and make Christina talk by any means necessary. Mahone goes to the apartment, finding only Sara tied up; he unties Sara and heads back to the loft, where the General and T-Bag are. Mahone, Michael and Lincoln then head to a bank, where they believe Christina is with Scylla. They enter the bank wearing masks, to avoid being recognized. They take Scylla, and when they get outside a shootout begins. Mahone and Michael get away, but Linc is caught. In the next episode, Mahone and Michael are the only ones left on the team. Linc and Sara are captured, and Self is in the hospital. Mahone and Michael decide it is time to bring the Company down and save everyone; they decide to go after Lincoln first. They set up a trap for Christina, but the police arrive; one of Christina's guards is killed in an explosion set up by Michael and meant for Christina. Later Michael gives Scylla to Mahone without the hard drive and has him save Lincoln, while Michael goes after Sara. Mahone has a bomb in Scylla which is large enough to kill Christina and her man, Downey. Christina has Mahone put in the same room Lincoln is in, moving Lincoln to the other side of the room. When the bomb fails to detonate and Christina realizes there is something wrong with Scylla, she calls on Mahone to check the device and threatens to kill him if he cannot activate it. He sets it manually. After a struggle with Christina and Downey, Mahone runs to the room where Lincoln is; the bomb detonates, killing Downey and (apparently) Christina. However, she survives. Michael and Sara come to pick up Lincoln and Mahone and head to another location, where Scylla's hard drive is. The remaining team then heads to a hospital for supplies to treat Lincoln's gunshot wound. Sara and Mahone go into the hospital, and Mahone is arrested by Federal agents. He is later freed and exonerated when Michael delivers Scylla to Kellerman. In the series' epilogue (set four years later), Mahone, Lincoln, Sucre, Michael's child and Sara visit Michael’s grave at a beach.
describes Michael as the "brains of the operation" and Mahone as his "arch-nemesis, sort of his equal on the other side of the law". Michael and Mahone have been described as "two sides of the same brilliant coin"; however, Mahone notes, "there's one big difference between you and I (sic), Michael. And you just proved it. You can't kill. And that's what it's gonna take to stop me. Because I don't have the same reservations. I can." His willingness to commit murder in order to preserve his life is shown when Michael asks if he would kill two innocent men to "get his life back", to which he replies "Absolutely". Fichtner defends Mahone by saying that he "doesn't do everything he does because he wants to do it. He's not OK about it. It's going to start to come out."
Mahone is not a straightforward character, and his past is revealed as the series progresses. According to series creator Paul Scheuring
, the writers try to let all the characters in the show "inhabit a gray area". Scheuring says that although Mahone's pursuit in the second season is very noble, "there are some things about him that we will learn that are slightly less than noble". Fichtner tries to play the character with a soft side, and believes that those characterizing him as "a hard guy" are "missing what I'm trying to do". Regarding the frequent intake of pills by Mahone, the series' executive producer and writer Matt Olmstead
says:
Mahone's anxiety is evident when he reaches for the midazolam
pills hidden inside his pen. When Mahone runs out of pills, he is tense and easily agitated. Fichtner notes the erratic behavior of his character, commenting, "The more twisted the better! Who wants to play a straight-away FBI guy?" He says that the actions that Mahone takes are affected by "some of the things that Mahone has in the back of his closet—and in the back of his mind, the voices he is hearing about his own life". Andy Dehnart of MSNBC
observes that Mahone, "as played by William Fichtner, always seemed to be on the edge of a nervous breakdown".
Although not a major characteristic, Mahone is depicted as remarkably good at unarmed combat (probably due to his military background). It is surprising when Lincoln attempts to kill him, he rapidly masters him and tries to choke him; Lincoln only manages to master him by squeezing his previous gunshot wound, only to be overcome again and have Mahone's gun on him. When one of Lechero's men attempts to stab Michael at the beginning of season three, Mahone stops him and breaks his neck in seconds. He is also the only one T-Bag believed could kill Sammy, but when the tunnel crumbles on top of Sammy Mahone rapidly masters his men. In season four when Christina Rose orders her bodyguard to kill Mahone, he beats both of them down within seconds.
character in The Fugitive
". Along with Paul Kellerman and Brad Bellick, Mahone became a fugitive hunter at the start of the second season. However, the writers were aware of the increasing number of antagonists in the show, which led Olmstead to remark, "If there are too many people pursuing them, [the pursuers] are rendered inept because they're not all catching our convicts, and you can only have so many close calls." The writers decided that the character of Mahone was to be a "very formidable" nemesis for the protagonists, and the "flip side of Michael Scofield". Scheuring acknowledges comparisons made between Mahone and Les Miserables
character, Inspector Javert
, "He certainly is Javert to Michael's Valjean, but you can express it however you want. He's his nemesis." One of the tricks used by the Prison Break writers is to constantly shift the sympathetic characters. Olmstead notes, "A white-hat character can be kind of boring". Fichtner does not believe that Mahone is a "bad guy"; rather, he has "a lot of demons driving him".
Fichtner was cast as Alexander Mahone one day before filming began for the second season. After acting the previous year in the series Invasion
, Fichtner did not intend to return to network television. When approached with the scripts for the first two episodes of the second season Fichtner was uncertain of his character's background, but attracted to "the potential of who this guy is". Fichtner was given two days to decide whether he wanted to play the character and, although he was unsure if the experience would be worthwhile, he later said that he was glad to have accepted the role. Fichtner has praised the quality of writing on the series, saying "Television shows live or die on writing. The joy of Prison Break has been the writers. They're great and they forever challenged me, which makes the journey worth it." However, Fichtner has also had several concerns with the scripts written for him, and talks to the writers to make sure that the character stays consistent. On at least one occasion, he has sat down with the writer and tweaked the entire script.
Fichtner said that his role on Prison Break ended up being "a lot longer" than he had originally thought. He was signed on to appear for a further two seasons, after being convinced by Olmstead to appear in a third (and final) one. The series' move from Dallas to Los Angeles for filming was also an inducement for Fichtner, who previously had to leave his family for filming. When Olmstead asked Fichtner to return for the fourth season, his only request was to make it challenging by making his character's journey difficult. Fichtner believes that in Mahone's journey, "All of a sudden the blinders went up... And little by little, he's trying to make his way back." He thinks that his character's journey should end with "something really out of the blue": "What if he totally loses it?"
found Mahone to be "a far more worthy adversary for Michael than prison guard Brad Bellick... who's still after the convicts but seems like a cartoon compared to the Inspector Javert-like Mahone." Jeff Comings of the Arizona Daily Star
comments that "William Fichtner is going to be the best actor on any show this season. He's brooding, sexy, enigmatic and a little scary as the FBI man waiting for the clan to cross state lines and make this a federal case. Add in the reliance on those pills he's hiding in that pen and I think I smell Emmy!" Brian Zoromski of IGN
believes that the "strongest portions of 'Manhunt' deal with the introduction of a new character, an FBI agent named Alexander Mahone, played by the great character actor
William Fichtner."
Digital Spy
's Ben Rawson-Jones praised the "wonderful" Fichtner, claiming he "quickly became more appealing than the brooding hero himself". However, he did not enjoy Mahone's storyline in the third season. Rawson-Jones felt that Mahone had turned into a "gibbering, sweating wreck most of the time", with only "occasional glimpses" of his brilliance. Robert Bianco of USA Today
said that although Fichtner was a welcome addition to the cast, he could not compensate for the "harebrained absurdities that have swamped this show". Dehnart called Mahone the best new character of the second season, but remarked that his ability to move from various locations in a short amount of time made him seem to possess "the power of teleportation".
Fictional character
A character is the representation of a person in a narrative work of art . Derived from the ancient Greek word kharaktêr , the earliest use in English, in this sense, dates from the Restoration, although it became widely used after its appearance in Tom Jones in 1749. From this, the sense of...
portrayed by William Fichtner
William Fichtner
William Edward Fichtner is an American actor. He is best known for his roles as Sheriff Tom Underlay on Invasion, as Alexander Mahone on Prison Break, as William Sharp in Armageddon, and as Ken Rosenberg in the video games Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.- Early life...
in the American television series Prison Break
Prison Break
Prison Break is an American television serial drama created by Paul Scheuring, that was broadcast on the Fox Broadcasting Company for four seasons, from 2005 until 2009. The series revolves around two brothers; one has been sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit, and the other devises an...
. The series revolves around two brothers: one who has been sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit and his younger sibling, a genius who devises an elaborate plan to help him escape prison. Mahone is introduced in the premiere of the second season
Prison Break (season 2)
The second season of Prison Break, an American serial drama television series, commenced airing in the United States on August 21, 2006 on Mondays at 9:00 pm on the Fox Broadcasting Company. Prison Break is produced by Adelstein-Parouse Productions, in association with Rat Television, Original...
as a special agent in the Federal Bureau of Investigation
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation is an agency of the United States Department of Justice that serves as both a federal criminal investigative body and an internal intelligence agency . The FBI has investigative jurisdiction over violations of more than 200 categories of federal crime...
, specializing in manhunts for escaped prisoners for 14 years.
When the protagonist of the series, Michael Scofield
Michael Scofield
Michael J. Scofield is the main protagonist in the American television series Prison Break. He is portrayed by Wentworth Miller. The character first appeared in the series pilot as a man who stages a bank robbery in order to get sent into the prison where his older brother, Lincoln Burrows , is...
(Wentworth Miller
Wentworth Miller
Wentworth Earl Miller III is an English-born American actor; model and screenwriter who rose to stardom following his role as Michael Scofield in the Fox Network television series Prison Break.-Early life:...
), successfully orchestrates the escape of eight prisoners from Fox River State Penitentiary
Fox River State Penitentiary
Fox River State Penitentiary is a fictional level five maximum-security prison featured prominently in the first season of the television series, Prison Break. The real-life representation of the prison is Joliet Prison, which is located in Joliet, Illinois...
, Mahone is assigned to spearhead the task force assembled to recapture the fugitives and manages to capture four of them. However, he is arrested in Panama
Panama
Panama , officially the Republic of Panama , is the southernmost country of Central America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The...
and imprisoned in Penitenciaría Federal de Sona
Penitenciaría Federal de Sona
Penitenciaría Federal de Sona is a fictional prison in the TV series Prison Break. The prison is set in Panama...
in the second-season finale. Mahone manages to escape, and is coerced into taking down the Company
The Company (Prison Break)
The Company is a fictional covert organization featured in the American television drama/thriller series Prison Break. It is a secret group of multinationals known almost exclusively by those who work for them . Its influence and power over individuals stretches to the White House, influencing...
, a secret group of multinational
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
s which exerts an influence on the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
. An assassin is hired by the Company to murder his son, and Mahone spends the majority of season four
Prison Break (season 4)
The fourth and final season of the serial drama television series Prison Break commenced airing in the United States on September 1, 2008. It consists of 24 episodes , 16 of which aired from September to December 2008...
seeking revenge.
The writers created Mahone's character in the second season so that there would be a fugitive pursuer who was not corrupt. When the writers saw that the number of antagonists was increasing, they decided to make him the alter ego of Scofield. The writers try to let Mahone inhabit a gray area, shifting the audience's sympathy for the character. Fichtner, attracted to the potential of the character, was cast as Mahone just one day before filming began for the second season; he signed on for only two seasons, but was convinced to appear in a third.
Background
Mahone is born in Boardman Ohio into an abusive family, and repeatedly beaten by his father. After joining the military Mahone is transferred to Special Ops during the Gulf War, later becoming an FBI agent. The nature of his quick advancement is questioned, and many of his files are classified.He marries a woman named Pamela (Callie Thorne
Callie Thorne
Calliope "Callie" Thorne is an American actress known for her current role as Dr. Dani Santino on the USA Network series Necessary Roughness...
) and they have a son, Cameron. The marriage lasts for 15 years until Mahone abruptly ends it without explanation, ordering his family out of the house.
Before separating from his wife Mahone pursues Oscar Shales, a murderer whom he struggles to capture; it is revealed that Mahone killed Shales and buried the body in his backyard. Fearful that his wife would discover his secret, he cuts her out of his life. Mahone is plagued with visions of Shales, which cause him to self-medicate with prescription drugs.
Season two
After eight prisoners escape from the Fox River State Penitentiary, Mahone leads the investigation to capture them. Reviewing their files, he decides to concentrate his efforts on Michael Scofield, mastermind of the breakout. He tracks the escapees to Oswego, IllinoisOswego, Illinois
Oswego is a village in Kendall County, Illinois, United States. As of the 2010 census, the village population was 30,355. Its population has more than doubled since the 2000 census count of 13,326...
, but they manage to escape. Mahone continues to pursue Michael and his brother Lincoln Burrows
Lincoln Burrows
Lincoln Burrows, played by Dominic Purcell, is one of the main protagonists of the American television series, Prison Break. The plot of Prison Break revolves around Lincoln Burrows' setup for the murder of the vice president's brother and his brother's plan to help him escape his death sentence....
(Dominic Purcell), who are able to avoid him on several occasions. While investigating a car explosion Mahone is shown to have a drug problem, swallowing pills concealed in a pen.
Mahone eventually tracks down John Abruzzi (Peter Stormare
Peter Stormare
is a Swedish film, stage, voice and television actor as well as a theatrical director, playwright and musician.- Early life :...
) and David "Tweener" Apolskis (Lane Garrison
Lane Garrison
Lane Edward Garrison is an American actor best known for the role of David "Tweener" Apolskis on the television series Prison Break.-Early life:Garrison was born in Dallas, Texas on May 23, 1980 and raised in Richardson, Texas...
). Mahone orders his men to shoot Abruzzi to death when he fails to surrender, and later murders Tweener in cold blood. When he returns to his office, Mahone is questioned by Internal Affairs
Internal affairs (law enforcement)
The internal affairs division of a law enforcement agency investigates incidents and plausible suspicions of lawbreaking and professional misconduct attributed to officers on the force...
Agent Richard Sullins (Kim Coates
Kim Coates
Kim Coates is a Canadian-American actor who has worked in both Canadian and American movies and television series. He has worked on Broadway portraying Stanley Kowalski in A Streetcar Named Desire and in the lead role of Macbeth performed at the Stratford Theatre...
) about their suspicious deaths.
It is revealed that Mahone is being blackmailed by Paul Kellerman
Paul Kellerman
Paul Kellerman, played by Paul Adelstein, is a fictional character from the American television series, Prison Break. The character was introduced to the series as a Secret Service special agent in the series pilot but the actor was not listed as a regular cast member until the third episode...
(Paul Adelstein
Paul Adelstein
Paul Adelstein is an American television and film actor, best known for the role of Agent Paul Kellerman in the television series, Prison Break, and his current role as pediatrician Cooper Freedman in the series Private Practice....
), a Secret Service agent forced to work for the Company. Kellerman threatens to reveal that Mahone killed Shales, and forces him to kill all the escapees in exchange for his silence. Although hesitant, Mahone agrees when an operative of the Company, Agent Kim (Reggie Lee
Reggie Lee (actor)
Reggie Lee is an American actor who played William Kim on the show Prison Break and also appeared as Tai Huang in two Pirates of the Caribbean films, as well as The Fast and the Furious...
), threatens to murder his family. Mahone continues his hunt for the remaining six escapees but is betrayed and shot by Kellerman, who transfers his allegiance to the brothers. He survives and decides to stop chasing the escapees, but is forced to resume his search when his son is injured in a car accident orchestrated by one of Kim's agents. Before returning to work, he murders the agent who arranged the accident. Mahone returns to his FBI field office, where he is informed by Agent Wheeler (Jason Davis
Jason Davis (actor)
Jason Davis is an actor best known for his voice acting work on the Animated TV series Recess.-Early life:...
) that Internal Affairs is investigating him.
When Charles "Haywire" Patoshik (Silas Weir Mitchell
Silas Weir Mitchell (actor)
Silas Weir Mitchell is an American character actor known for playing disturbing or unstable characters.-Career:He has had recurring guest roles in the first season of 24 , My Name Is Earl , and Prison Break...
) murders a civilian, Mahone asks Brad Bellick
Brad Bellick
Bradley "Brad" Bellick is a fictional character from the American television series, Prison Break. He is portrayed by Wade Williams. As one of the principal characters of Prison Break, he has been featured in all four seasons of the series...
(Wade Williams
Wade Williams
Wade Andrew Williams is an American actor who is best known for his starring role as Brad Bellick on Fox's television series Prison Break.-Personal life:...
) (former captain of correctional officers at Fox River) to help him find Haywire. Bellick finds Haywire, chasing him up a grain mill; Mahone climbs the mill and talks Haywire into committing suicide.
Mahone's next target, Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin
Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin
Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin, played by Rockmond Dunbar, is a fictional character from the American television series, Prison Break. The character was introduced as a prisoner in the pilot episode. The actor was promoted from a recurring guest star to a regular cast member midway through the...
(Rockmond Dunbar
Rockmond Dunbar
Rockmond Dunbar is an American actor. He is perhaps best known for his roles as Kenny Chadway on the Showtime television drama series Soul Food, and as Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin on the FOX television drama series Prison Break...
), narrowly evades him; C-Note soon offers to turn himself in, however, if his wife and child are cared for. C-Note is taken to jail, and Mahone tells him to commit suicide in order to guarantee the protection of his family. C-Note attempts suicide, but is rescued by the guards. Sullins makes a deal with him, and promises to release him if he testifies against Mahone.
Because he is unable to capture Michael, Mahone orders Agent Lang (Barbara Eve Harris
Barbara Eve Harris
Barbara Eve Harris is a Canadian actress. She was born on March 8, 1959 in Tobago She played Agent Lang on the show Prison Break. She has also guest-starred on such shows as Private Practice, JAG, Commander in Chief, ER, CSI: Miami, Are You Afraid of the Dark?, Cold Case, Eureka and The West Wing,...
) to follow Michael's girlfriend Sara Tancredi
Sara Tancredi
Dr. Sara Tancredi is a fictional character from the American television series, Prison Break. She is played by Sarah Wayne Callies. Her role in the first season of the series is a prison doctor.- Background :...
(Sarah Wayne Callies
Sarah Wayne Callies
Sarah Wayne Callies is an American actress who is best known for her role as Sara Tancredi in the American television series Prison Break. She now plays Lori Grimes in The Walking Dead.- Early life :...
). Mahone's sanity begins to unravel from his determination to catch Michael and Lincoln, and from his benzodiazepine
Benzodiazepine
A benzodiazepine is a psychoactive drug whose core chemical structure is the fusion of a benzene ring and a diazepine ring...
addiction. Michael and Lincoln travel to Panama, where Mahone lures them into a trap by impersonating fellow escapee Fernando Sucre
Fernando Sucre
Fernando Sucre, played by Amaury Nolasco, is a fictional character from the American television series, Prison Break. He is introduced to the series in the pilot episode as the prison cellmate of the series protagonist, Michael Scofield .-Background:Of Puerto Rican descent, Sucre grew up in Chicago...
(Amaury Nolasco
Amaury Nolasco
Amaury Nolasco Garrido is a Puerto Rican actor, best known for the role of Fernando Sucre on the television series Prison Break, and for his role in Transformers.-Early life:...
). He captures Lincoln and contacts Michael, ordering him to surrender Charles Westmoreland's (Muse Watson
Muse Watson
Muse Watson is an American stage and screen actor. He most recently appeared as the recurring character Mike Franks in the television drama NCIS.-Biography:Watson was born on July 20, 1948 in Alexandria, Louisiana...
) five million dollars and his boat, the Christina Rose. Michael plants drugs on the Christina Rose, which he gives to Mahone. After an attempt to kill Kim, Mahone takes the boat and leaves; however, he is arrested on drug-possession charges. Mahone is taken to Sona along with Michael, Bellick and Fox River escapee Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell (Robert Knepper
Robert Knepper
Robert Lyle Knepper is an American actor. He is best known for starring as Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell in the Fox network's drama series Prison Break, for which he was nominated a Satellite Award...
).
Season three
Inside Sona, Mahone attempts to convince Michael to form a partnership. Michael refuses to work with him, angry because Mahone killed his father. As new prisoners, Michael and Mahone are brought before Lechero (Robert WisdomRobert Wisdom
Robert Wisdom is an American actor. He is a graduate of Columbia University.-Biography:Wisdom was born in Washington, D.C. to Jamaican parents. He appeared in four of the five seasons of HBO program The Wire as Howard "Bunny" Colvin...
) (a prisoner who rules Sona and its residents). When Mahone learns about the bounty placed on fellow inmate James Whistler (Chris Vance
Chris Vance (actor)
Chris Vance is a British actor. Vance is known for his role as Jack Gallagher in the Fox series Mental and James Whistler in Prison Break, and has guest-starred on Burn Notice and Dexter-Early life:...
), he manages to find him and deliver him to Lechero.
Mahone begins to suffer from drug withdrawal and is informed by his state-appointed lawyer that his trial is almost a full year away. When Whistler realizes that Michael is not entirely on his side, he forms an alliance with Mahone. Mahone deduces that Michael is planning to break Whistler out of the prison, and Michael eventually agrees to let him join the escape. After he begins hallucinating about Haywire, Mahone accepts heroin from T-Bag to calm himself.
Agent Lang visits Mahone and offers him a deal: eight years in a St. Louis prison in exchange for testifying against the government in the Lincoln Burrows conspiracy, or multiple homicide charges if he does not cooperate. Mahone eventually accepts the offer and confesses to Lang that he killed Shales, and that guilt made him turn to drugs. Because he is unable to maintain his composure while testifying, Mahone's testimony is dismissed, and Lang is forced to return Mahone to Sona.
Mahone (now rehabilitated) approaches Whistler and Michael and rejoins the escape. He is informed that their escape route (a tunnel leading to the edge of the prison) is almost complete, and that they will break out of Sona that night. Michael, Whistler, Mahone and fellow inmate McGrady (Carlo Alban
Carlo Alban
Carlo Alban is an Ecuadorian actor. He is known as Carlo from Sesame Street , appearing in the telefilm Elmo Saves Christmas. He grew up in Sayreville, New Jersey and attended Rutgers University, majoring in visual arts.-Notable roles:He has had recurring roles in Strangers with Candy, Thicker...
) manage to escape; Lechero, T-Bag and Bellick are caught by the Sona guards.
Lincoln wants to shoot Mahone in revenge for killing his father, but Whistler escapes from Lincoln's custody and Lincoln is forced to chase him. Mahone takes advantage of the situation and flees, eventually making his way to a bar.
Mahone is approached by Whistler, who offers him a job in the Company with him and operative Gretchen Morgan (Jodi Lyn O'Keefe
Jodi Lyn O'Keefe
Jodi Lyn O'Keefe is an American actress and model, who at age 17 portrayed Cassidy Bridges on Nash Bridges. She is also known for her role on Prison Break as Gretchen Morgan, a.k.a. "Susan B. Anthony".-Early life:...
). Mahone warns Whistler that Gretchen is the "weak link", and that Michael will eventually hunt them down if Gretchen has indeed killed Sara.
Season four
Mahone accepts Whistler's offer to work for the Company. However, the group is secretly working with Homeland Security to destroy the Company, focusing their attention on a card (code-named "Scylla"), which contains information on all of the Company's agents and operations. Whistler finds the card; however, he is killed by the Company's hitman, Wyatt (Cress WilliamsCress Williams
Cress Williams is an American film and television actor, best known for playing the hitman, Wyatt in Prison Break and Detective Ed Williams in Close to Home. He is also known for his role as Inspector Antwon Babcock in the final season of Nash Bridges, and as D’Shawn Hardell in seasons 4 and 5 of...
), who takes the card.
Mahone returns to his family home to find his son has been murdered and since he is a wanted criminal, he is arrested by the police. Mahone is contacted by Agent Don Self (Michael Rapaport
Michael Rapaport
Michael David Rapaport is an American, actor, director and a comedian. He has acted in more than forty films since the early 1990s...
), a Homeland Security
Homeland security
Homeland security is an umbrella term for security efforts to protect states against terrorist activity. Specifically, is a concerted national effort to prevent terrorist attacks within the U.S., reduce America’s vulnerability to terrorism, and minimize the damage and recover from attacks that do...
agent who was working with Whistler to take down the Company. He offers Mahone freedom if he joins an unofficial operation to recover Scylla from the Company. Mahone accepts, learning that other members of the operation are Michael, Lincoln, Sara, Bellick, Sucre and computer hacker and identity thief Roland Glenn (James Hiroyuki Liao
James Hiroyuki Liao
James Hiroyuki Liao is an American television, film and theatre actor.-Life and career:Liao was born in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, and is a 2004 graduate of the Juilliard School's drama division. He also studied at the Marjorie Ballentine Studio. In his acting work, he has also been credited as James...
). The group devises a plan to regain the card, which succeeds. However, they learn that Scylla is actually made up of six cards held by different members of the Company. The group continues to look for the other cards, while Mahone asks Lang to find out who killed his son.
Mahone obtains a picture of Wyatt and meets with his estranged wife Pam, who makes him promise to hunt down and kill Wyatt. When Wyatt is captured Mahone tortures him, forcing him to apologize to his wife over the phone. He ties a cinderblock to Wyatt's wrists, and drowns him in the ocean. The group manages to complete Scylla, and Lincoln absolves Mahone for his role in his father's death. However, Self betrays the team and steals Scylla, forcing them to be fugitives once again.
While the others hunt Self, Mahone meets with Lang and asks for help. Lang calls Wheeler to help Mahone; however, Wheeler lies to Mahone about a meeting with the Attorney General and arrests him. While transporting Mahone to the airport, Lang allows him to escape and lies to Wheeler about the direction in which he has fled. Mahone returns to help Lincoln, Self, T-Bag and Gretchen retrieve Scylla. When Gretchen is shot while trying to double-cross the team, Mahone and the others leave her for the authorities.
After realizing Lincoln's mother (Christina Scofield) took Scylla, Mahone helps him stop her and retrieve Scylla after the Company threatens him with a photo of Pam. He later saves Lincoln from being assassinated by one of Christina's snipers. Mahone identifies one of the people who has connections with Christina, Vincent Sandinsky. However, the team does not find any connections with him and he believes his story (which is a lie). They catch him in the lie; after Krantz arrives to take charge they interrogate Sandinsky, who reveals some information about a hotel room. He and the team track a car rental slip and after more digging, eventually find the car (with their passports) outside the energy conference; they realize it is a set-up. It is revealed that Christina is setting the team up for the assassination of the Indian Prime Minister's son (who was thought to have brought Scylla). After the assassination of Naveen Banarjee, Mahone and Self are outside the hotel on the ohone with Scofield and Burrows. The brothers tell Mahone to go the apartment where Sara is holding Christina hostage, and make Christina talk by any means necessary. Mahone goes to the apartment, finding only Sara tied up; he unties Sara and heads back to the loft, where the General and T-Bag are. Mahone, Michael and Lincoln then head to a bank, where they believe Christina is with Scylla. They enter the bank wearing masks, to avoid being recognized. They take Scylla, and when they get outside a shootout begins. Mahone and Michael get away, but Linc is caught. In the next episode, Mahone and Michael are the only ones left on the team. Linc and Sara are captured, and Self is in the hospital. Mahone and Michael decide it is time to bring the Company down and save everyone; they decide to go after Lincoln first. They set up a trap for Christina, but the police arrive; one of Christina's guards is killed in an explosion set up by Michael and meant for Christina. Later Michael gives Scylla to Mahone without the hard drive and has him save Lincoln, while Michael goes after Sara. Mahone has a bomb in Scylla which is large enough to kill Christina and her man, Downey. Christina has Mahone put in the same room Lincoln is in, moving Lincoln to the other side of the room. When the bomb fails to detonate and Christina realizes there is something wrong with Scylla, she calls on Mahone to check the device and threatens to kill him if he cannot activate it. He sets it manually. After a struggle with Christina and Downey, Mahone runs to the room where Lincoln is; the bomb detonates, killing Downey and (apparently) Christina. However, she survives. Michael and Sara come to pick up Lincoln and Mahone and head to another location, where Scylla's hard drive is. The remaining team then heads to a hospital for supplies to treat Lincoln's gunshot wound. Sara and Mahone go into the hospital, and Mahone is arrested by Federal agents. He is later freed and exonerated when Michael delivers Scylla to Kellerman. In the series' epilogue (set four years later), Mahone, Lincoln, Sucre, Michael's child and Sara visit Michael’s grave at a beach.
Characteristics
Mahone is depicted as an intelligent FBI agent with "an amazingly sharp mind", quickly discovering the secret of Michael's tattoos and his plans. His thoroughness and investigational skills allow him to extrapolate the fugitives' location, causing Michael to remark, "It's like he knows where we're going, what we're thinking." Mahone has been described as "intellectually matched with Scofield", mainly in his ability to analyze and interpret his surroundings. Craig Blanchard of The San Diego Union-TribuneThe San Diego Union-Tribune
-Predecessors:The predecessor newspapers of the Union-Tribune were:* San Diego Sun, founded 1861 and merged with the Evening Tribune in 1939.* San Diego Union, founded October 10, 1868.* Evening Tribune, founded December 2, 1895.-Ownership:...
describes Michael as the "brains of the operation" and Mahone as his "arch-nemesis, sort of his equal on the other side of the law". Michael and Mahone have been described as "two sides of the same brilliant coin"; however, Mahone notes, "there's one big difference between you and I (sic), Michael. And you just proved it. You can't kill. And that's what it's gonna take to stop me. Because I don't have the same reservations. I can." His willingness to commit murder in order to preserve his life is shown when Michael asks if he would kill two innocent men to "get his life back", to which he replies "Absolutely". Fichtner defends Mahone by saying that he "doesn't do everything he does because he wants to do it. He's not OK about it. It's going to start to come out."
Mahone is not a straightforward character, and his past is revealed as the series progresses. According to series creator Paul Scheuring
Paul Scheuring
Paul T. Scheuring is an American screenwriter and director for films and television shows. His work includes the 2003 film A Man Apart and, more notably, the creation of the television drama Prison Break, for which he is also credited as an executive producer and Head Writer.-Biography:Scheuring...
, the writers try to let all the characters in the show "inhabit a gray area". Scheuring says that although Mahone's pursuit in the second season is very noble, "there are some things about him that we will learn that are slightly less than noble". Fichtner tries to play the character with a soft side, and believes that those characterizing him as "a hard guy" are "missing what I'm trying to do". Regarding the frequent intake of pills by Mahone, the series' executive producer and writer Matt Olmstead
Matt Olmstead
Matt Olmstead is an American writer and producer for television shows.-Early life:Olmstead graduated from California State University, Chico. He is an alumnus of the College of Humanities and Fine Arts. He went to Hollywood in hopes of being a script writer. Olmstead eventually worked with an...
says:
Mahone's anxiety is evident when he reaches for the midazolam
Midazolam
Midazolam is a short-acting drug in the benzodiazepine class developed by Hoffmann-La Roche in the 1970s. The drug is used for treatment of acute seizures, moderate to severe insomnia, and for inducing sedation and amnesia before medical procedures. It possesses profoundly potent anxiolytic,...
pills hidden inside his pen. When Mahone runs out of pills, he is tense and easily agitated. Fichtner notes the erratic behavior of his character, commenting, "The more twisted the better! Who wants to play a straight-away FBI guy?" He says that the actions that Mahone takes are affected by "some of the things that Mahone has in the back of his closet—and in the back of his mind, the voices he is hearing about his own life". Andy Dehnart of MSNBC
MSNBC
MSNBC is a cable news channel based in the United States available in the US, Germany , South Africa, the Middle East and Canada...
observes that Mahone, "as played by William Fichtner, always seemed to be on the edge of a nervous breakdown".
Although not a major characteristic, Mahone is depicted as remarkably good at unarmed combat (probably due to his military background). It is surprising when Lincoln attempts to kill him, he rapidly masters him and tries to choke him; Lincoln only manages to master him by squeezing his previous gunshot wound, only to be overcome again and have Mahone's gun on him. When one of Lechero's men attempts to stab Michael at the beginning of season three, Mahone stops him and breaks his neck in seconds. He is also the only one T-Bag believed could kill Sammy, but when the tunnel crumbles on top of Sammy Mahone rapidly masters his men. In season four when Christina Rose orders her bodyguard to kill Mahone, he beats both of them down within seconds.
Development
The character of Mahone was not in the original plan of the Prison Break staff writers for the second season. When the writers approached the Fox network with their plans for the second season, Fox Entertainment president Peter Liguori suggested including a fugitive pursuer who was "not corrupt"; a character who is "like the Tommy Lee JonesTommy Lee Jones
Tommy Lee Jones is an American actor and film director. He has received three Academy Award nominations, winning one as Best Supporting Actor for the 1993 thriller film The Fugitive....
character in The Fugitive
The Fugitive (1993 film)
The Fugitive is a 1993 American thriller film based on the television series of the same name. The film was directed by Andrew Davis and stars Harrison Ford and Tommy Lee Jones. The film was one of the few movies associated with a television series to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best...
". Along with Paul Kellerman and Brad Bellick, Mahone became a fugitive hunter at the start of the second season. However, the writers were aware of the increasing number of antagonists in the show, which led Olmstead to remark, "If there are too many people pursuing them, [the pursuers] are rendered inept because they're not all catching our convicts, and you can only have so many close calls." The writers decided that the character of Mahone was to be a "very formidable" nemesis for the protagonists, and the "flip side of Michael Scofield". Scheuring acknowledges comparisons made between Mahone and Les Miserables
Les Misérables
Les Misérables , translated variously from the French as The Miserable Ones, The Wretched, The Poor Ones, The Wretched Poor, or The Victims), is an 1862 French novel by author Victor Hugo and is widely considered one of the greatest novels of the nineteenth century...
character, Inspector Javert
Javert
Javert is a fictional character from the novel Les Misérables by Victor Hugo. He is a prison guard, and later policeman, who devotes his life to the law. He is always referred to just simply as "Javert" or "Inspector Javert" by the narrator and other characters throughout the novel; his first name...
, "He certainly is Javert to Michael's Valjean, but you can express it however you want. He's his nemesis." One of the tricks used by the Prison Break writers is to constantly shift the sympathetic characters. Olmstead notes, "A white-hat character can be kind of boring". Fichtner does not believe that Mahone is a "bad guy"; rather, he has "a lot of demons driving him".
Fichtner was cast as Alexander Mahone one day before filming began for the second season. After acting the previous year in the series Invasion
Invasion (TV series)
Invasion is an American science fiction television series that aired on ABC for only one season beginning in September 2005. Somewhat similar to Invasion of the Body Snatchers, the show told the story of the aftermath of a hurricane in which water-based creatures infiltrate a small Florida town and...
, Fichtner did not intend to return to network television. When approached with the scripts for the first two episodes of the second season Fichtner was uncertain of his character's background, but attracted to "the potential of who this guy is". Fichtner was given two days to decide whether he wanted to play the character and, although he was unsure if the experience would be worthwhile, he later said that he was glad to have accepted the role. Fichtner has praised the quality of writing on the series, saying "Television shows live or die on writing. The joy of Prison Break has been the writers. They're great and they forever challenged me, which makes the journey worth it." However, Fichtner has also had several concerns with the scripts written for him, and talks to the writers to make sure that the character stays consistent. On at least one occasion, he has sat down with the writer and tweaked the entire script.
Fichtner said that his role on Prison Break ended up being "a lot longer" than he had originally thought. He was signed on to appear for a further two seasons, after being convinced by Olmstead to appear in a third (and final) one. The series' move from Dallas to Los Angeles for filming was also an inducement for Fichtner, who previously had to leave his family for filming. When Olmstead asked Fichtner to return for the fourth season, his only request was to make it challenging by making his character's journey difficult. Fichtner believes that in Mahone's journey, "All of a sudden the blinders went up... And little by little, he's trying to make his way back." He thinks that his character's journey should end with "something really out of the blue": "What if he totally loses it?"
Reception
Mahone is often referred to by critics as Michael's arch-nemesis. Rob Owen of the Pittsburgh Post-GazettePittsburgh Post-Gazette
The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, also known simply as the "PG," is the largest daily newspaper serving metropolitan Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.-Early history:...
found Mahone to be "a far more worthy adversary for Michael than prison guard Brad Bellick... who's still after the convicts but seems like a cartoon compared to the Inspector Javert-like Mahone." Jeff Comings of the Arizona Daily Star
Arizona Daily Star
The Arizona Daily Star is the major morning daily newspaper that serves Tucson and surrounding districts of southern Arizona in the United States. The paper was purchased by Pulitzer in 1971; Lee Enterprises bought Pulitzer in 2005....
comments that "William Fichtner is going to be the best actor on any show this season. He's brooding, sexy, enigmatic and a little scary as the FBI man waiting for the clan to cross state lines and make this a federal case. Add in the reliance on those pills he's hiding in that pen and I think I smell Emmy!" Brian Zoromski of IGN
IGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
believes that the "strongest portions of 'Manhunt' deal with the introduction of a new character, an FBI agent named Alexander Mahone, played by the great character actor
Character actor
A character actor is one who predominantly plays unusual or eccentric characters. The Oxford English Dictionary defines a character actor as "an actor who specializes in character parts", defining character part in turn as "an acting role displaying pronounced or unusual characteristics or...
William Fichtner."
Digital Spy
Digital Spy
Digital Spy is a British entertainment and media news website. According to Alexa Internet traffic statistics, as of February 2011, Digital Spy is the 93rd most popular website in the United Kingdom, with an overall Alexa ranking of 2,088....
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
said that although Fichtner was a welcome addition to the cast, he could not compensate for the "harebrained absurdities that have swamped this show". Dehnart called Mahone the best new character of the second season, but remarked that his ability to move from various locations in a short amount of time made him seem to possess "the power of teleportation".