The Prison Break cast is full of great actors who brought the show’s complex antiheroes and despicable villains to life, and they all have impressive filmographies outside the series. Prison Break revolves around the bond between two brothers and their plot to break out of jail. Along the way, they're helped out by the prison doctor, their childhood friend and lawyer, and a handful of fellow inmates who also want to break free. The producers of Prison Break found the perfect actor to play each part in the cast.

Traditionally, TV shows set up a main cast with several major characters that the audience can check in on every week. But Prison Break was far from a traditional TV show. Lincoln Burrows and his loyal brother Michael Scofield are the only characters who appear in every episode of Prison Break. Thanks to constant character deaths, the cast is always changing. Headlined by Dominic Purcell and Wentworth Miller, the Prison Break cast includes alums from the CW’s Arrowverse, AMC’s The Walking Dead universe, and the Fast & Furious franchise.

Dominic Purcell

As Lincoln Burrows

Character: Dominic Purcell leads the Prison Break cast as Lincoln Burrows, a high school dropout who is wrongfully convicted of the murder of the U.S. vice president’s brother. While Michael seeks to free his brother, Lincoln is often more worried about his loved ones getting dragged into the dangerous situation he has found himself in. This is especially true of his son, L.J. Lincoln is a caring brother and father, but he can also be quite intimidating when pushed too far.

Actor: Outside of Prison Break, Purcell is best known for his recurring superhero role as Mick Rory, aka Heat Wave, in the CW shows The Flash and Legends of Tomorrow. He also played a different comic book role as Dracula in Blade: Trinity. Purcell starred as Lewis “Lew” Brookbank in the 2004 neo-noir crime thriller Three Way and played Jeremy Niles in the 2011 remake of the classic thriller Straw Dogs.

Wentworth Miller

As Michael Scofield

Character: Lincoln’s brother, Michael Scofield, is played by Wentworth Miller. Michael is a structural engineer who masterminded his brother’s escape plan and is the leader of the Fox River Eight. Miller was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for his turn as Michael.

Though things don't always go as planned, both during and after the escape, Michael proves to be brilliant at adapting.

Believing that Lincoln is innocent, Michael has himself imprisoned in the same facility as his brother. He carries out his perfectly laid plan which also includes vital secrets tattooed onto his body. Though things don't always go as planned, both during and after the escape, Michael proves to be brilliant at adapting.

Actor: Miller is also known for playing Dr. Adam Lockwood in Underworld, Chris Redfield in Resident Evil: Afterlife, and Luke Seacord in The Loft. He reunited with Prison Break co-star Dominic Purcell to the cast of the CW series The Flash and its spinoff Legends of Tomorrow, playing the role of Leonard Snart, also known as Captain Cold. He made his screenwriting debut with the 2013 psychological thriller Stoker.

Amaury Nolasco

As Fernando Sucre

Character: Amaury Nolasco appears in the Prison Break cast as Fernando Sucre, Michael’s friend and cellmate at Fox River State Penitentiary who wishes to reunite with his fiancée on the outside. While Sucre initially doesn't want anything to do with Michael's escape as he is only serving a short prison sentence, he becomes worried his fiancée will leave him and s the plan. He remains a pivotal part of the show, proving himself as much of a hero as Lincoln and Michael.

Actor: Nolasco is also known for playing Orange Julius in 2 Fast 2 Furious, Detective Cosmo Santos in Street Kings, Jack Lupino in the film adaptation of the Max Payne video games, and ACWO Jorge “Fig” Figueroa in the first live-action Transformers movie. His other TV roles include Rodrigo Suarez in Telenovela and Lt. Det. Rafael Martinez in the revival of Rizzoli & Isles.

Robert Knepper

As Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell

Character: Theodore Bagwell, better known as “T-Bag,” a violent and duplicitous psychopath, is played by Robert Knepper. T-Bag is one of the main villains in the first season of the show, but after he discovers the hole being dug in Michael's cell, the others are forced to let him the escape plan. While he maintains his villainy for much of the series T-Bag's redemption arc by the end of Prison Break is one of the show's most controversial aspects given the horrific things he did prior to that.

Actor: Knepper has played other memorable TV roles like Angus McDonough in The CW series iZombie, Samuel Sullivan in the final season of NBC’s Heroes, and Rodney Mitchum in Showtime’s revival of Twin Peaks. His movie roles include Yuri Marklov in Hitman, Johnson in Transporter 3, General Harkness in Jack Reacher: Never Go Back, and Antonius in both parts of The Hunger Games: Mockingjay. He voiced Keith in Hoodwinked! and Kronos in Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters.

Sarah Wayne Callies

As Sara Tancredi

Character: Sarah Wayne Callies appears in the Prison Break cast as Sara Tancredi, the prison doctor at Fox River who aids Michael and Lincoln’s escape plan. The relationship between Prison Break is the heart of the series in many ways with Sara overcoming her guilt in helping Michael escape and ing him on the run. While she was seemingly killed off in season 3, Sara was later brought back, leading to her and Michael eventually getting married.

Actor: Besides her role in Prison Break, Callies is best known for playing Lori Grimes in the first three seasons of the AMC zombie drama series The Walking Dead. She also played Anita Dyck in the Crave sitcom Letterkenny, Margaret Sanders in the CBC drama Unspeakable, Robin Perry in the NBC drama Council of Dads, and Birdie in the ABC drama The Company You Keep.

Marshall Allman

As Lincoln "L.J." Burrows, Jr.

Character: Lincoln’s teenage son, Lincoln Burrows Jr. – also known as “L.J.” – is played by Marshall Allman. L.J. is deeply impacted by his dad’s prison sentence and also believes him to be innocent. Lincoln loves his son but attempts to push him away to ensure that L.J. does not become a target for his enemies. This turns out to be true as L.J. is also framed for murder and ends up having to go on the run with his father and uncle.

Actor: Allman is best known for playing teenage shapeshifter Tommy Mickens in the HBO horror drama series True Blood. He also played Milo Khoury in the Channel 4 sci-fi series Humans, Julian Howe in the Psycho prequel series Bates Motel, and Kevin Kelly in the Bruce Willis action thriller Hostage. Allman has also recently collaborated with filmmaker Jim Cummings on Thunder Road and The Wolf of Snow Hollow.

William Fichtner

As Alexander Mahone

Character: William Fichtner ed the Prison Break cast in season 2 with the role of FBI agent Alexander Mahone, the corrupt FBI agent who is put in charge of hunting down the Fox River Eight. He is responsible for killing several of the escapees, but when he ends up imprisoned with Michael and the others on Sona in season 3, he teams up with them to escape, remaining their ally for the rest of the series.

Actor: William Fichtner is recognizable as Roger Van Zant in Heat, Colonel Willie Sharp in Armageddon, SFC Jeff Sanderson in Black Hawk Down, and the gun-toting bank manager from the opening heist sequence of The Dark Knight. His other TV roles include Jameson Henthrop in Empire, Phil Yagoda in Entourage, and Adam Janikowski in Mom.

Prison Break ing Cast & Characters

Robin Tunney as Veronica Donovan - Michael and Lincoln’s childhood friend who becomes Lincoln’s lawyer after reviewing his case. Robin Tunney made her film debut with the role of Ella in Encino Man and went on to play Debra in Empire Records, Sarah Bailey in The Craft, and Teresa Lisbon in the TV series The Mentalist.

Peter Stormare as John Abruzzi - The head of the Chicago mafia. Peter Stormare is best known for playing Gaear Grimsrud in the movie Fargo, Uli Kunkel in The Big Lebowski, Lev Andropov in Armageddon, Abram Tarasov in John Wick: Chapter 2, and the Ghost in 22 Jump Street.

Wade Williams as Brad Bellick - The captain of Fox River’s correctional officers. Outside the cast of Prison Break, Wade Williams is known for playing Father Cronin in The Bernie Mac Show and voicing Two-Face in the two-part direct-to-video animation Batman: The Dark Knight Returns.

Paul Adelstein as Paul Kellerman - The Secret Service agent sent to supervise Lincoln’s execution. Paul Adelstein is best known for playing pediatrician Cooper Freedman in the ABC medical drama Private Practice. He also played David Sweetzer in the short-lived NBC sitcom I Feel Bad and created and starred as Shelley Cohen in the Bravo dark comedy series Imposters.

Rockmond Dunbar as Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin - Rockmond Dunbar plays Benjamin Miles “C-Note” Franklin, who blackmails Michael at Fox River. Dunbar also played Kenny Chadway in Showtime’s Soul Food, Sheriff Eli Roosevelt in FX’s Sons of Anarchy, and FBI Agent Abe Gaines in Hulu’s The Path.

Chris Vance as James Whistler - Chris Vance appears in the Prison Break cast as James Whistler, who is incarcerated at Sona for the murder of the mayor’s son. Vance starred as Frank Martin, the role originated by Jason Statham, in Transporter: The Series, and played Commander Harry Langford in Hawaii Five-0 and Dalton Walsh in Bosch season 5.

Robert Wisdom as Norman "Lechero" St. John - Panamanian drug kingpin Norman “Lechero” St. John, the prison ringleader at Sona, is played by Robert Wisdom. The actor is known for playing psychological warfare expert Jim Moss in HBO’s Barry and Harold Conway in the Hulu movie Vacation Friends.

Danay García as Sofía Lugo - Whistler’s girlfriend. Danay García is best known for playing Luciana Galvez in Fear the Walking Dead and Alma Diaz in the video game Mafia III.

Jodi Lyn O’Keefe as Gretchen Morgan - An operative for The Company introduced as “Susan B. Anthony.” Jodi Lyn O’Keefe first rose to prominence with the role of Cassidy Bridges in the police procedural Nash Bridges and went on to play Taylor Vaughan in She’s All That and Josette Laughlin in The Vampire Diaries.

Prison Break has a 61% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Michael Rapaport as Donald Self - Introduced to the cast in Prison Break season 4, Homeland Security special agent Donald Self is played by Michael Rapaport. The actor is best known for his movie roles as Dick Ritchie in True Romance and Tom Scoggins in Deep Blue Sea. He also played the recurring roles of Phoebe’s boyfriend Gary in Friends and Frank Stump on My Name Is Earl.

Mark Feuerstein as Jacob Anton Ness - The rogue CIA operative responsible for Michael’s disappearance. Mark Feuerstein is also known for his recurring TV roles as Joe DeStefano in Caroline in the City, Clifford Calley in The West Wing, Dr. Hank Lawson in Royal Pains, and Watson Brewer in The Baby-Sitters Club.

Inbar Lavi as Sheba - Introduced to the cast in Prison Break season 5 as a Yemen freedom fighter and Lincoln’s love interest, Inbar Lav also played Vee in the Fox series Gang Related, Maddie Jonson in the Bravo series Imposters, and Eve in the last three seasons of the Netflix series Lucifer.

Augustus Prew as David "Whip" Martin - T-Bag’s illegitimate son and Michael’s cellmate, introduced in season 5. Outside the cast of Prison Break, Augustus Prew is best known for playing Sean in The Morning Show and Médhor in The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. He also replaced Evan Peters as Todd Haynes in Kick-Ass 2.