In this day and age, you could find shows about anything and watch them just about everywhere and while there are many shows that are set in prisons, we have tried to list some of the best shows set in prisons you should watch. Prison shows are contained and have a good amount of time to really define their characters as they want to because simply they are not going anywhere. So, here are the 7 best shows set in prison you should watch.
Orange is the New Black
Synopsis: Created by Jenji Kohan (Weeds), Orange is The New Black is a woman’s prison dramedy that takes no prisoners. Based on the acclaimed memoir of the same name by Piper Kerman, the series follows engaged Brooklynite Piper Chapman (Taylor Schilling), who decade-long relationship with a drug runner, Alex (Laura Prepon), results in her arrest and a 15 month long detention in a federal penitentiary. To pay her debt to society, Piiper must trade her comfortable New York life with her fiance, Larry (Jason Biggs), for an orange prison jumpsuit and a baffling prison culture where she is forced to question everything she believes about herself and the world at large. As she struggles to adjust to her new reality, she finds unexpected laughter, tears, conflict and camaraderie amidst an eccentric and outspoken group of inmates.
Wentworth
Synopsis: Kindhearted Bea Smith (Danielle Cormack, Rake [Australia]) arrives at Wentworth Prison, arrested for the attempted murder of her abusive husband, and is thrown headfirst into an unforgiving world with rules of its own. Desperate to protect her teenage daughter (Georgia Flood, ANZAC Girls), Bea tries to stay out of trouble but gets caught up in a brutal rivalry between celebrity inmate Franky (Nicole da Silva, Rush) and former mob boss Jacs (Kris McQuade, Strictly Ballroom). When a shocking murder inflames tensions at the prison, Bea realizes that life behind bars is a constant struggle to survive. This internationally acclaimed, award-winning Australian drama boasts “sensational performances, clever writing, a dark atmosphere, and some cutting humor. It’s everything a modern drama should be and more” (Metro, UK). The phenomenal ensemble cast also features Leeanna Walsman (Janet King), Kate Atkinson (Jack Irish), Robbie Magasiva (The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers), and Aaron Jeffery (McLeod’s Daughters).
For Life
Synopsis: For Life is a fictional serialized legal and family drama inspired by the life of Isaac Wright, Jr. about a prisoner who becomes a lawyer, litigating cases for other inmates while fighting to overturn his own life sentence for a crime he didn’t commit. His quest for freedom is driven by his desperate desire to get back to the family he loves and reclaim the life that was stolen from him. The show will also, through the window of his ferocious struggle and his complicated relationship with a progressive female prison warden, examine the flaws and challenges in our penal and legal systems.
Prison Break
Synopsis: Due to a political conspiracy, an innocent man is framed for the death of the vice president’s brother. But his own brother will not let him be executed for a crime he didn’t commit, and the two plan to escape before his sentence is carried out.
Black Bird
Synopsis: Inspired by actual events, when high school football hero and decorated policeman’s son Jimmy Keene (Taron Egerton) is sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison, he is given the choice of a lifetime — enter a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane and befriend suspected serial killer Larry Hall (Paul Walter Hauser), or stay where he is and serve his full sentence with no possibility of parole. Keene quickly realizes his only way out is to elicit a confession and find out where the bodies of several young girls are buried before Hall’s appeal goes through. But is this suspected killer telling the truth? Or is it just another tale from a serial liar? This dramatic and captivating story subverts the crime genre by enlisting the help of the very people put behind bars to solve its mysteries.
The Night Of
Synopsis: A probing contemporary look at crime, the presumption of guilt and the urban prison system, The Night Of delves into the intricacies of a complex New York City murder case with compelling cultural and political overtones. Played out over the course of eight riveting hours, The Night Of offers viewers an invigorating new take on the crime-drama genre, exploring the vagaries of a single murder case through multiple,contentious points of view. Starring John Turturro as an embattled defense attorney and Riz Ahmed as his young Pakistani-American client, the story centers around the brutal murder of a young woman on Manhattan’s Upper West Side, examining the initial police investigation, arrest, and imprisonment of the prime suspect – a likeable, unassuming college student who finds himself and his family thrown into the pit of NYC’s criminal, legal, penal and judicial system. Meanwhile, his lawyer, an inveterate “precinct trawler” who lucks into the biggest case of his life, becomes entangled in a web of complicated legal maneuverings by detectives and rival attorneys that undermine his ability to try the case. Written by Steven Zaillian (Oscar®-winning writer of Schindler’s List) and Richard Price (The Wire, Oscar®-nominated for the adapted screenplay of The Color of Money), The Night Of takes an unvarnished look at both the multifaceted NYC criminal- justice system and the feral purgatory of Rikers Island, where the accused await trial for felony crimes.
Oz
Synopsis: Welcome to Emerald City, an experimental unit of the Oswald Maximum Security Prison or OZ. Em City is about prisoner rehabilitation over public retribution. No matter how hardened a criminal or killer, whether you’re in for a few years or for life, you have a role to play. Once inside, choose your friends carefully. Stay on everybody’s good side…if you can find one.
