Pilot (Prison Break episode)
Encyclopedia
The Pilot is the first episode of 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...

, which premiered on August 29, 2005 in the United States. That night, it was aired as the first of a two-part pilot special, along with "Allen", which broadcast straight after this episode. The episode was directed by series producer Brett Ratner
Brett Ratner
Brett Ratner is an American film director, film producer and music video director. He is best known for directing the Rush Hour film series, The Family Man, Red Dragon, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Tower Heist. He was also a producer on the Fox drama series, Prison Break.- Early life :Ratner was...

, noted director of such works as Rush Hour and Red Dragon
Red Dragon (film)
Red Dragon is a 2002 thriller film based on Thomas Harris' novel of the same name and featuring psychiatrist and serial killer Dr. Hannibal Lecter. It is a prequel to The Silence of the Lambs....

, and written by series creator and producer 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 episode was given numerous positive reviews in not just the US, but from the majority of the rest of world, reaching record ratings in various countries.

The episode introduces the two main protagonists 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...

 (played by 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:...

) and 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....

 (played by Dominic Purcell). Lincoln Burrows has been sentenced to death for a crime he did not commit: the murder of Terrence Steadman, the brother of the Vice President of the United States
Vice President of the United States
The Vice President of the United States is the holder of a public office created by the United States Constitution. The Vice President, together with the President of the United States, is indirectly elected by the people, through the Electoral College, to a four-year term...

. Every motion to delay or appeal to Burrows' execution has been exhausted due to the high profile of the case. Burrows' brother 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...

, a structural engineer, plans to get himself incarcerated so he can save his brother from his death sentence
Death Sentence
Death Sentence is a short story by the American science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the November 1943 issue of Astounding Science Fiction and reprinted in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov.-Plot summary:...

, by using his new body tattoo.

Plot

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...

 receives a mysterious body tattoo
Tattoo
A tattoo is made by inserting indelible ink into the dermis layer of the skin to change the pigment. Tattoos on humans are a type of body modification, and tattoos on other animals are most commonly used for identification purposes...

, and then strips his apartment of articles of various people from Fox River, along with a hard disk which he threw into a river. The next day, he robs a bank
Bank robbery
Bank robbery is the crime of stealing from a bank during opening hours. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's Uniform Crime Reporting Program, robbery is "the taking or attempting to take anything of value from the care, custody, or control of a person or persons by force or threat of...

, but surrenders without incident when the police arrive. Michael is sent to court, refusing to put up a fight, even after his lawyer, Veronica Donovan (Robin Tunney
Robin Tunney
Robin Jessica Tunney is an American actress. She is best known for her lead roles in the movie The Craft and the television series Prison Break and The Mentalist.-Early life:...

) attempts to defend him, so he is sentenced to 5 years at Fox River, the prison he requested to be sent to. Upon entering Fox River, Michael meets Capt. 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:...

), whom he quickly discovers to be somewhat arrogant. He then meets his cell mate, 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:...

), who tells him the only thing he can do is serve time. Sucre shows Michael around the outside, noting the territories throughout. He then shows Michael to the isolated 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....

, or "Link the Sink" as they call him who killed Terrence Steadman, the Vice President's brother.

Michael realizes the only way to get to his brother is to join PI
Penal labour
Penal labour is a form of unfree labour in which prisoners perform work, typically manual labour. The work may be light or hard, depending on the context. Forms of sentence which involve penal labour include penal servitude and imprisonment with hard labour...

 (Prison Industries) of which 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 :...

) is in charge. Michael approaches Abruzzi, but is rejected, where he calmly tells Abruzzi that he has something he needs - and leaves an origami
Origami
is the traditional Japanese art of paper folding, which started in the 17th century AD at the latest and was popularized outside Japan in the mid-1900s. It has since then evolved into a modern art form...

 crane, giving him a sign that he knows of Fibonacci, the informant who put Abruzzi in prison. Abruzzi allows him to join PI. In the infirmary, Michael introduces himself to Dr. 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 :...

), with whom he tries to charm. She gives him his insulin shot, since Michael claims to have Type 1 diabetes. On Michael's second visit, Sara notices his abnormally low glucose level and tells him that he is reacting to the insulin as if he is not diabetic. She then says that on his next visit, she would like to run a test. To keep up his bluff, Michael approaches C-Note
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...

), the prison "pharmacist
Pharmacist
Pharmacists are allied health professionals who practice in pharmacy, the field of health sciences focusing on safe and effective medication use...

" and pays him in advance for PUGNAc
PUGNAc
PUGNAc is a 1,5-hydroximolactone, acting as an inhibitor of a variety of N-acetylhexosaminidases. It was long thought that increased levels of O-GlcNAc in human cells lead to Type II diabetes. O-GlcNAc levels were artificially raised with PUGNAc, which inhibits O-GlcNAcase, a...

, an insulin blocker.

Elsewhere, Sucre proposes to his girlfriend, Maricruz Delgado (Camille Guaty
Camille Guaty
Camille Guaty is an American film and television actress. She is known for her role as Daisy on Gotta Kick It Up!.-Early life:Guaty was born in California of Cuban and Puerto Rican descent...

), who visits him in conjugal
Conjugal visit
A conjugal visit is a scheduled extended visit during which an inmate of a prison is permitted to spend several hours or days in private, usually with a legal spouse...

, and accepts. Burrows' son, L.J. (Marshall Allman
Marshall Allman
Marshall Scot Allman is an American actor. He is known to television audiences for his role as L. J. Burrows on Fox's successful television series, Prison Break...

) starts dealing cannabis
Cannabis
Cannabis is a genus of flowering plants that includes three putative species, Cannabis sativa, Cannabis indica, and Cannabis ruderalis. These three taxa are indigenous to Central Asia, and South Asia. Cannabis has long been used for fibre , for seed and seed oils, for medicinal purposes, and as a...

, but is arrested by the police. Veronica sees Michael, who tells her to find out who is setting Lincoln up. A bishop McMarrow (Chelcie Ross
Chelcie Ross
Chelcie Claude Ross is an American character actor. He served in Vietnam as an officer in the United States Air Force, and earned an MFA from the Dallas Theater Center.-Filmography:*Skokie *On the Right Track...

) attempts to delay Lincoln's death sentence
Death Sentence
Death Sentence is a short story by the American science-fiction writer Isaac Asimov. It was first published in the November 1943 issue of Astounding Science Fiction and reprinted in the 1972 collection The Early Asimov.-Plot summary:...

, where he is visited by agents 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....

) and Daniel Hale (Danny McCarthy
Danny McCarthy
Danny McCarthy is an American actor based in Chicago. Danny's role as Special Agent Danny Hale in Prison Break made him a familiar face nationwide. He has acted in plays with the Steppenwolf and the Famous Door, and has performed twice at the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland...

). After he ignores their warning, McMarrow is shot and killed in his sleep, at which point, Veronica starts to suspect Burrows may be framed. Fox River's warden, Henry Pope (Stacy Keach
Stacy Keach
Stacy Keach is an American actor and narrator. He is most famous for his dramatic roles; however, he has done narration work in educational programming on PBS and the Discovery Channel, as well as some comedy and musical...

) asks Michael if he can finish making a model of the Taj Mahal
Taj Mahal
The Taj Mahal is a white Marble mausoleum located in Agra, India. It was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his third wife, Mumtaz Mahal...

 for his anniversary with his wife, where he eventually starts working. Later, Michael meets Lincoln, and tells him he is going to take him out. After PI, a skeptical Lincoln asks Michael if he's seen the blueprints to the prison. Michael says, "Better than that -- I've got them on me." He reveals his mysterious body tattoo, which is a series of geometric patterns that disguise the blueprints to Fox River, on which Michael will base his escape plans throughout the series.

Production

The original concept of Prison Break—a man deliberately getting himself sent to prison in order to help someone else (his brother, in this case) escape—was suggested to 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...

 by producer Dawn Parouse, who wanted to produce an action-oriented series. Although Scheuring thought it was a good idea, he was initially stumped as to why someone would embark on such a mission or how he could develop it into a viable television show. He came up with the story of the wrongfully accused brother, and began working on the plot outline and devising the characters. In 2003, he pitched the idea to the Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...

 but was turned down as Fox felt nervous about the long-term possibilities of such a series. He subsequently showed the concept to other channels but was also turned down as it was thought to be more suited for a film project than a television series. Prison Break was later considered as a possible 14-part miniseries
Miniseries
A miniseries , in a serial storytelling medium, is a television show production which tells a story in a limited number of episodes. The exact number is open to interpretation; however, they are usually limited to fewer than a whole season. The term "miniseries" is generally a North American term...

, which drew the interest of Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg
Steven Allan Spielberg KBE is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, video game designer, and studio entrepreneur. In a career of more than four decades, Spielberg's films have covered many themes and genres. Spielberg's early science-fiction and adventure films were seen as an...

 before his departure due to his involvement with War of the Worlds
War of the Worlds (2005 film)
War of the Worlds is a 2005 American science fiction film adaptation of H. G. Wells' novel of the same name, directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Josh Friedman and David Koepp. It is one of three film adaptations of War of the Worlds released that year, alongside The Asylum's version and...

. Thus, the miniseries never materialized. Following the huge popularity of serialized
Serial (radio and television)
Serials are series of television programs and radio programs that rely on a continuing plot that unfolds in a sequential episode by episode fashion. Serials typically follow main story arcs that span entire television seasons or even the full run of the series, which distinguishes them from...

 prime time
Prime time
Prime time or primetime is the block of broadcast programming during the middle of the evening for television programing.The term prime time is often defined in terms of a fixed time period—for example, from 19:00 to 22:00 or 20:00 to 23:00 Prime time or primetime is the block of broadcast...

 television series such as Lost and 24, the Fox Network had a change of heart and backed the production in 2004.

The pilot episode was filmed a year after Scheuring wrote the script. The majority of the pilot was filmed on location in and around Chicago. After it was closed down in 2002, Joliet Prison
Joliet Prison
Joliet Correctional Center was a prison in Joliet, Illinois, United States from 1858 to 2002. It is featured in the motion picture The Blues Brothers as the prison from which Jake Blues is released at the beginning of the movie...

 became the set of Prison Break in 2005, standing in as 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...

 on screen. Scenes set in Lincoln's cell, the infirmary and the prison yard were all shot on location at the prison. Lincoln's cell was the same one in which serial killer John Wayne Gacy
John Wayne Gacy
John Wayne Gacy, Jr. was an American serial killer, rapist and clown who sexually assaulted and murdered at least 33 teenage boys and young men between 1972 and 1978. Gacy buried 26 of his victims in the crawlspace of his home, buried three others elsewhere on his property, and discarded the...

 was incarcerated, which at least one member of the production crew refused to enter, believing that it was haunted.

Broadcast and reception

The Pilot, along with the following episode was released on Fox
Fox Broadcasting Company
Fox Broadcasting Company, commonly referred to as Fox Network or simply Fox , is an American commercial broadcasting television network owned by Fox Entertainment Group, part of Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation. Launched on October 9, 1986, Fox was the highest-rated broadcast network in the...

 with an estimated audience of 10.5 million viewers, placing the series as the seventh most watched show in America that week, ranking first in both the 18–49 and 18–34 demographics. The critical and ratings success was also evident in various other areas around the world. In the UK, the Pilot episode aired 24 January 2006, and received viewing figures of 0.91 million, which was the 28th most viewed programme in the week on Five. Though not at first successful, the ratings will increase as the season progresses.

In France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, the episode aired on August 31, 2006 with around 5.5 million viewers (25.8% share). It was not as publicised in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 since the airing on 21 June 2007, as it received an audience share of only 13.5%. In Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...

, the episode aired on January 28, 2007 with an estimated 7 million viewers, the highest rated episode of any foreign series in Poland. The Pilot aired in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....

 on 2 January, with a rating of 769,000 viewers, an unusually high figure for an American series to air on Greek television.

For the episode, Mark Helfrich was nominated for an Eddie Award in the category "Best Edited One-Hour Series for Commercial Television". However, his competitor, Stephen Semel, won the award for the American television series Lost
Lost (TV series)
Lost is an American television series that originally aired on ABC from September 22, 2004 to May 23, 2010, consisting of six seasons. Lost is a drama series that follows the survivors of the crash of a commercial passenger jet flying between Sydney and Los Angeles, on a mysterious tropical island...

. The pilot episode did, however win an Artios Casting Society of America award
Casting Society of America
Founded in Los Angeles, California in 1982, the Casting Society of America is a professional society of about 350 casting directors for film, television, and theatre in Australia, Canada, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States. The society is not to be confused with an industry union. The...

 for "Best Dramatic Pilot Casting" in 2006. The award was handed to John Papsidera
John Papsidera
John Papsidera is a two-time Emmy award-winning casting director based in Los Angeles, California, known for his work in film and television. Papsidera has worked with some of the most successful directors in the world such as Steven Spielberg, Ridley Scott, and Christopher Nolan.He has been...

, Wendy O'Brien and Claire Simon.
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