After 4 seasons on the run, the adventures of Michael Scofield, Lincoln Burrows and friends has come to a gripping, satisfying conclusion with the 2 hour series finale of Prison Break which aired this past Friday on FOX. I’ve been a fan of this thrilling, ORIGINAL series since the very first episode and I can tell you for sure that the finale had more twists and turns than a season of Heroes; it was one hell of a roller coaster ride much like the entire series itself. If you haven’t yet watched it, I warn you there are major spoilers ahead.

After 4 seasons of watching Michael think his way out of every impossible situation imaginable, I was disappointed that the series ended with him dying from a brain tumor (presumably); what can I say, I’m a sucker for a happy ending. That aside, the finale was jam packed with intrigue, suspense and action and brought back some beloved characters for a really fun, rewarding, albeit sad conclusion to this landmark series. I recently had the opportunity to ask Nick Santora, writer/producer of the series, some questions about the finale and the show itself. Nick has been one of the driving forces behind the show for all 4 seasons and has since gone on to write a few films and even have his first novel published, Slip & Fall. In fact, Nick had the honor of being the first author to have his novel published by Borders new publishing arm. If you haven’t had the chance to read Slip & Fall, I highly recommend it. It is the story of a lawyer who gets in too deep with the mob and I promise once you pick it up you will be hard pressed to put it down. Nick also wrote the screenplays for both The Longshots and Punisher: War Zone and although the Punisher wasn’t a commercial success, it is fair to say that after 3 failed attempts to translate that character to the screen, it just may not be possible. Read my interview below to hear Nick’s thoughts about the finale and what the future has in store for Mr. Santora.

 

It feels bittersweet ... there is a part of me that believes that I won't be able to take part in a show of this caliber again because it is a once in a lifetime, all-the-planets aligning, kind of thing. At the same time, I'm proud of the entire Prison Break team and what we accomplished together and the way in which we did it - always respectful of each others' thoughts and ideas, no ego trips, none of the behind-the-scenes Hollywood stuff you hear about.

 

 

Not that I can think of ... we told a lot of stories. I watch some other shows and I see what passes for an episode arc, and I think to myself: "What happened in this episode wouldn't have filled the first 10 pages of a Prison Break script, let alone a whole episode." We recently aired an episode that the writers broke in which we had an escape from a police-surrounded hotel, a bank robbery, a kidnapping of our lead's love interest, the murder of a major character's wife, and our co-lead shot in the lung in the last 5 seconds of the show. This wall all in one episode and I'm sure I'm leaving stuff out. I don't know what else we could tell - the story had run its course.

 

 

 

T-Bag because T-Bag plays with language -- you could write stuff for T-Bag that you could never write for anyone else on TV.

 

 

Matt Olmstead has explained that it all started with an observation from Wentworth Miller, who really tries to think things through for his character which is always appreciated by the writers and producers. Now I wasn't involved in this part of the process, but it's my understanding that Went had mentioned that Michael was a character with blood on his hands, as lots of people have died as a result of him breaking his brother out of prison. That is an astute observation and then, as always happens with these kinds of decisions, meetings were had with the studio execs, the network execs, the producers, etc and the decision was made that Michael would pay the ultimate price to save the woman he loved and their

child -- he would do the most heroic thing he could do, make the biggest sacrifice.

 

 

Was the General getting the last laugh before or after 100,000 volts of electricity coursed through his body? I couldn't disagree with your premise more ... Michael and the good guys got the last laugh on

the General - they tore down his empire and had him put to death. (and, by the way, you are making a HUGE assumption that Michael died from his illness -- everyone is making that assumption -- you need to watch the 2 hour bonus to see what happened. never assume with Prison Break)

 

 

The final two episodes, I believe, will be released as a DVD. That's up to the executives -- the writer/producers have no say at all as to how that will be dealt with -- they just tell us what to make, then they decide how they want to distribute it. I can't give details about the last 2 hours, but I can say this -- you will see Michael alive again (no, it won't be a "dream").

 

 

I have a year left on my contract with the studio, so the way it works is they ask you to help with a show that they are making for that final year since I am no longer attached to "my" show Prison Break (and I say "my" with the meaning that it has been my main job for the past 4 years.) I'm finishing up two films for Walden Media, and I just sold a comic book idea to DC Comics - it's pretty gritty and cool, at least I think so. I'm working on a fun comedy feature with Adam Carolla and a feature I'm producing with Prison Break Executive Producer Dawn Parouse Olmstead - I loved working with Dawn the past four years, so I'm looking forward to that. And I'm 1/2 way done with my next novel, but that poor story always seems to take a back seat to my other projects which are much more time sensitive.