Exclusive: Taylor Schilling (Orange Is the New Black), Rosemarie DeWitt (Little Fires Everywhere), Aaron Eckhart (Midway) and Paul Dano (Escape At Dannemora) are set as leads in the voice cast of Pantheon, AMC’s hourlong animated primetime drama series from Turn creator/executive producer Craig Silverstein and AMC Studios.
Pantheon, which received a two-season order in March, is based on the short stories by Ken Liu about Uploaded Intelligence, or human consciousness uploaded to the cloud. The innovative series’ visual style is described as a fresh take on graphic realism done in a traditional 2D way, using modern tools.
The first season of Pantheon focuses on Maddie, a bullied teen who receives mysterious help from someone online. The stranger soon is revealed to be her recently deceased father, David, whose consciousness has been uploaded to the cloud following an experimental destructive brain scan. David is the first of a new...
Pantheon, which received a two-season order in March, is based on the short stories by Ken Liu about Uploaded Intelligence, or human consciousness uploaded to the cloud. The innovative series’ visual style is described as a fresh take on graphic realism done in a traditional 2D way, using modern tools.
The first season of Pantheon focuses on Maddie, a bullied teen who receives mysterious help from someone online. The stranger soon is revealed to be her recently deceased father, David, whose consciousness has been uploaded to the cloud following an experimental destructive brain scan. David is the first of a new...
- 7/23/2020
- by Nellie Andreeva and Denise Petski
- Deadline Film + TV
Update: Joyce Mitchell, the 55-year-old prison tailor who was a key to helping two convicted killers break out of a maximum-security New York prison, has been paroled. The incident served as the inspiration for the 2018 Showtime miniseries, Escape at Dannemora, which starred Patricia Arquette, who won a Golden Globe, SAG and Critics Choice awards for her portrayal of Mitchell. The series received 12 Emmy nominations.
Mitchell supplied the digging tools that allowed the inmates to escape. Recapturing them cost the state an estimated $23 million. In 2015, Mitchell received a 2 1/3 to seven year sentence for aiding the escape. She was denied parole three times.
Earlier: A former prison worker who helped two inmates escape is angry with director Ben Stiller about her portrayal in his Showtime series, Escape At Dannemora, which details the strange story.
Joyce “Tillie” Mitchell, 54, whom the tabloids nicknamed the “Shawskank,” was convicted of helping killers David Sweat and Richard...
Mitchell supplied the digging tools that allowed the inmates to escape. Recapturing them cost the state an estimated $23 million. In 2015, Mitchell received a 2 1/3 to seven year sentence for aiding the escape. She was denied parole three times.
Earlier: A former prison worker who helped two inmates escape is angry with director Ben Stiller about her portrayal in his Showtime series, Escape At Dannemora, which details the strange story.
Joyce “Tillie” Mitchell, 54, whom the tabloids nicknamed the “Shawskank,” was convicted of helping killers David Sweat and Richard...
- 2/7/2020
- by Bruce Haring
- Deadline Film + TV
A mix of industry veterans and fresh faces will battle it out at this year’s Emmys for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie… but which one deserves to hear their name called on TV’s biggest night?
Stellan Skarsgard, up for his role in HBO’s Chernobyl, does have a family connection working in his favor: His son Alexander won this award two years ago for Big Little Lies. After previous nods in this category for Bessie and The Night Of, Michael K. Williams is back for the third time for his work as absentee dad...
Stellan Skarsgard, up for his role in HBO’s Chernobyl, does have a family connection working in his favor: His son Alexander won this award two years ago for Big Little Lies. After previous nods in this category for Bessie and The Night Of, Michael K. Williams is back for the third time for his work as absentee dad...
- 8/30/2019
- TVLine.com
It always helps to know someone when you’re breaking into showbiz, and a familial connection to Pink Floyd led British-born Edward Shearmur to work with the late two-time Oscar nominated composer Michael Kamen, known for such scores as Brazil and Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves.
Handling a variety of tasks for more than a decade for Kamen, one of the takeaways for Shearmur was his mentor’s ability to improvise music literally on the stand before a live orchestra, giving prompt directions to each section of brass, percussion, woodwind, etc and weaving them all together.
It’s a talent that Shearmur literally used while he was writing the score to the Showtime Ben Stiller-directed limited series Escape at Dannemora. After getting a note from Stiller while he was on a plane, Shearmur literally wrote a piece of music while he had an orchestra at his disposal in a Nashville,...
Handling a variety of tasks for more than a decade for Kamen, one of the takeaways for Shearmur was his mentor’s ability to improvise music literally on the stand before a live orchestra, giving prompt directions to each section of brass, percussion, woodwind, etc and weaving them all together.
It’s a talent that Shearmur literally used while he was writing the score to the Showtime Ben Stiller-directed limited series Escape at Dannemora. After getting a note from Stiller while he was on a plane, Shearmur literally wrote a piece of music while he had an orchestra at his disposal in a Nashville,...
- 8/29/2019
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Fresh from his Wildlife directorial debut, Paul Dano found himself headed to prison. In Showtime’s limited series Escape at Dannemora, Dano plays real-life convict David Sweat, who escaped from New York’s Clinton Correctional Facility in 2015. Meeting with Sweat in preparation for the shoot, Dano delved deep into the portrayal of the man who was ultimately recaptured and whose prison breakout cost the life of his fellow escapee Richard Matt (Benicio Del Toro). The role earned Dano his first Emmy nomination, as he began to write his next feature project.
Deadline: How do you tend to choose your roles? In the case of Escape at Dannemora, what was the draw?
Paul Dano: Well, it’s funny. People often ask, “What do you want to do next?” and I never really know until I read something, meaning it really starts with the writing. I have a big, old crush on directors,...
Deadline: How do you tend to choose your roles? In the case of Escape at Dannemora, what was the draw?
Paul Dano: Well, it’s funny. People often ask, “What do you want to do next?” and I never really know until I read something, meaning it really starts with the writing. I have a big, old crush on directors,...
- 8/27/2019
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
When Ben Stiller agreed to direct all eight hours of the true prison escape saga “Escape at Dannemora” (Showtime), he had no idea what he was in for. The director of six movies had never helmed a mini-series or series, except for his sketch comedy “The Ben Stiller Show” in the early ’90s; he had directed one pilot (Fox’s “Heat Vision and Jack”). “It was new territory for me,” he said on the phone. “I didn’t know what it would involve.”
When Stiller read the scripts brought to him by showrunners Michael Tolkin and Brett Johnson (“Ray Donovan”), he knew the story had been fictionalized. “I didn’t know enough about what actually happened,” he said. “I read the Inspector General’s 160-page report and decided to start from scratch. They were my partners throughout. We’d block out what the episodes would be, but they’d have to sit down and write.
When Stiller read the scripts brought to him by showrunners Michael Tolkin and Brett Johnson (“Ray Donovan”), he knew the story had been fictionalized. “I didn’t know enough about what actually happened,” he said. “I read the Inspector General’s 160-page report and decided to start from scratch. They were my partners throughout. We’d block out what the episodes would be, but they’d have to sit down and write.
- 8/20/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
When Ben Stiller agreed to direct all eight hours of the true prison escape saga “Escape at Dannemora” (Showtime), he had no idea what he was in for. The director of six movies had never helmed a mini-series or series, except for his sketch comedy “The Ben Stiller Show” in the early ’90s; he had directed one pilot (Fox’s “Heat Vision and Jack”). “It was new territory for me,” he said on the phone. “I didn’t know what it would involve.”
When Stiller read the scripts brought to him by showrunners Michael Tolkin and Brett Johnson (“Ray Donovan”), he knew the story had been fictionalized. “I didn’t know enough about what actually happened,” he said. “I read the Inspector General’s 160-page report and decided to start from scratch. They were my partners throughout. We’d block out what the episodes would be, but they’d have to sit down and write.
When Stiller read the scripts brought to him by showrunners Michael Tolkin and Brett Johnson (“Ray Donovan”), he knew the story had been fictionalized. “I didn’t know enough about what actually happened,” he said. “I read the Inspector General’s 160-page report and decided to start from scratch. They were my partners throughout. We’d block out what the episodes would be, but they’d have to sit down and write.
- 8/20/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
When casting a series in which real-life events or a best-selling novel provides parameters for what characters should look like, a casting director’s goal is to find that ensemble’s “essence.” “You’re not going to match people, and I don’t think that’s the important part,” says Rachel Tenner, casting director of Showtime’s limited series “Escape at Dannemora.” “The important part is the story that these actors are going to tell honestly and beautifully.” Whether it’s finding an actor with the ability to channel a famous Broadway star or getting the accents of an international cast to appear uniform, this year’s nominees for limited series/TV movie/special casting were all about achieving authenticity.
“Chernobyl”
(HBO)
In trying to re-create the nuclear disaster in 1986 Ukraine, casting director Nina Gold says she drove her colleagues crazy with the phrase, “But do they feel Russian?” To Gold,...
“Chernobyl”
(HBO)
In trying to re-create the nuclear disaster in 1986 Ukraine, casting director Nina Gold says she drove her colleagues crazy with the phrase, “But do they feel Russian?” To Gold,...
- 8/15/2019
- by Carita Rizzo
- Variety Film + TV
Last time Patricia Arquette was staring an Emmy in the face it was 2007, and she was on her second nomination for playing Allison Dubois in Medium—the pretty mom who has it all, with psychic powers to boot. What could have been a hackneyed stereotype became, in the hands of Arquette, a nuanced and moving portrait of a woman torn. She didn’t win back then, but this year she just might, with two astoundingly challenging real-life roles under her belt: abusive mom Dee Dee Blanchard in Hulu’s The Act, and dissatisfied prison worker-turned-criminal Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell in Showtime’s Escape at Dannemora.
With the two limited series shoots, and her new Netflix film Otherhood crammed into a few months, Arquette found she leaned on the network TV training she had on Medium to run that marathon. “Absolutely it prepared me for that,” she says. “I think it gives...
With the two limited series shoots, and her new Netflix film Otherhood crammed into a few months, Arquette found she leaned on the network TV training she had on Medium to run that marathon. “Absolutely it prepared me for that,” she says. “I think it gives...
- 8/14/2019
- by Antonia Blyth
- Deadline Film + TV
With a total of 12 Emmy nominations, Showtime’s Escape at Dannemora has emerged as a leader in the limited series race. The show based on a real-life 2015 prison break explores the dynamics between convicts Richard Matt (Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (Paul Dano) and prison worker Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell (Patricia Arquette), who ultimately helped them escape. All three actors received nominations, along with the show itself and director Ben Stiller.
Showrunners Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin were on the Ray Donovan set in 2015 when they originally heard about the Clinton Correctional Facility in Upstate New York. “Immediately we said, ‘We’re going to make a limited series — this is a movie-star vehicle.’ We just fell head over heels in love with this story,” Johnson told Deadline after Tuesdays nominations.
When Stiller’s name came up to direct, the creators jumped at the idea. “We actually worked on it for...
Showrunners Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin were on the Ray Donovan set in 2015 when they originally heard about the Clinton Correctional Facility in Upstate New York. “Immediately we said, ‘We’re going to make a limited series — this is a movie-star vehicle.’ We just fell head over heels in love with this story,” Johnson told Deadline after Tuesdays nominations.
When Stiller’s name came up to direct, the creators jumped at the idea. “We actually worked on it for...
- 7/16/2019
- by Antonia Blyth
- Deadline Film + TV
Production designers Luke Hull and Mark Ricker were the real heroes of “Chernobyl” and “Escape at Dannemora.” They were responsible for authentically recreating the Soviet nuclear plant in Pripyat, Ukraine, and the Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate New York. These served as the pivotal backdrops for the two acclaimed historical dramas about the nuclear explosion in April 27, 1986, and the prison escape in 2015.
Indeed, the monstrous-looking plant, with its creepy concrete corridors and piping, and the castle-like prison, with its signature cell block structure, served as major characters. But it was no easy task replicating the precise details in the location shooting and set building to help convey the physical magnitude of the two structures.
Hull described “Chernobyl, ” the HBO miniseries created by Craig Mazin and directed by Johan Renck, as going down a rabbit hole. First, Hull and his team researched a decommissioned nuclear plant in Kursk, which had a...
Indeed, the monstrous-looking plant, with its creepy concrete corridors and piping, and the castle-like prison, with its signature cell block structure, served as major characters. But it was no easy task replicating the precise details in the location shooting and set building to help convey the physical magnitude of the two structures.
Hull described “Chernobyl, ” the HBO miniseries created by Craig Mazin and directed by Johan Renck, as going down a rabbit hole. First, Hull and his team researched a decommissioned nuclear plant in Kursk, which had a...
- 6/20/2019
- by Bill Desowitz
- Indiewire
Ben Stiller has made a career out of making people laugh in films like “Zoolander” and “Tropic Thunder,” both of which he also directed. On paper, the actor-director wouldn’t seem like the perfect fit for a limited series about a prison escape, the tone of which is serious and thrilling. Yet Showtime’s “Escape at Dannemora” proves just how adept Stiller is as a director, showing off skills of which we hadn’t thought him capable. Receiving very positive acclaim from critics and audiences, “Escape at Dannemora” is seven episodes of carefully-plotted drama that rewards viewers with strong payoffs that are only earned because of the precise character work leading up to it.
SEEMark Ricker Interview: ‘Escape at Dannemora’ production designer
Stiller, who directed the entire series, trusts the audience enough to show how the events of the Clinton Correctional Facility escape happened, rather than outwardly telling. We see...
SEEMark Ricker Interview: ‘Escape at Dannemora’ production designer
Stiller, who directed the entire series, trusts the audience enough to show how the events of the Clinton Correctional Facility escape happened, rather than outwardly telling. We see...
- 6/17/2019
- by Kevin Jacobsen
- Gold Derby
Having already won a SAG Award, Golden Globe and Critics’ Choice Award for her role in Showtime’s “Escape at Dannemora,” Patricia Arquette competes in the Emmy derby as the favorite to win Best TV Movie/Mini Actress, according to Gold Derby odds (37/10).
What makes her performance so winning is the complexity of her real-life role as Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell, a prison worker who helped inmates Richard Matt (Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (Paul Dano) break out of the Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate New York in 2015. At various times, she’s villain, victim, vulnerable and fierce, but always a rumbling volcano that keeps TV viewers watching and waiting for her to pop.
See ‘Escape at Dannemora’ creators Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin started writing before the manhunt even ended [Exclusive Video Interview]
It’s hard to root for Tilly when we meet her as she cheats on her husband Lyle by...
What makes her performance so winning is the complexity of her real-life role as Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell, a prison worker who helped inmates Richard Matt (Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (Paul Dano) break out of the Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate New York in 2015. At various times, she’s villain, victim, vulnerable and fierce, but always a rumbling volcano that keeps TV viewers watching and waiting for her to pop.
See ‘Escape at Dannemora’ creators Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin started writing before the manhunt even ended [Exclusive Video Interview]
It’s hard to root for Tilly when we meet her as she cheats on her husband Lyle by...
- 6/16/2019
- by Tom O'Neil and Luca Giliberti
- Gold Derby
It’s going to be hard to top Patricia Arquette’s portrayal of a woman at the center of a bizarre romantic quadrangle in the Showtime dramatic mini-series “Escape at Dannemora,” based on the real-life upstate New York prison escape of inmates Richard Matt and David Sweat in June 2015. Here are the five reasons why:
1. Serious awards cred
While the series from showrunners Michael Tolkin and Brett Johnson and director Ben Stiller scored rave reviews, it also racked up surprise awards earlier in the year, going against HBO favorite “Sharp Objects.” Arquette followed up her “Boyhood” Oscar win with Golden Globe and SAG awards for “Dannemora,” and at the Critics Choice Awards, tied with “Sharp Objects” star Amy Adams.
Since then “Sharp Objects” has faded in the rear view as “Dannemora” picks up steam. Gold Derby‘s panel of experts, for example, give Arquette the edge against movie stars Adams and another Oscar-winner,...
1. Serious awards cred
While the series from showrunners Michael Tolkin and Brett Johnson and director Ben Stiller scored rave reviews, it also racked up surprise awards earlier in the year, going against HBO favorite “Sharp Objects.” Arquette followed up her “Boyhood” Oscar win with Golden Globe and SAG awards for “Dannemora,” and at the Critics Choice Awards, tied with “Sharp Objects” star Amy Adams.
Since then “Sharp Objects” has faded in the rear view as “Dannemora” picks up steam. Gold Derby‘s panel of experts, for example, give Arquette the edge against movie stars Adams and another Oscar-winner,...
- 6/13/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Thompson on Hollywood
It’s going to be hard to top Patricia Arquette’s portrayal of a woman at the center of a bizarre romantic quadrangle in the Showtime dramatic mini-series “Escape at Dannemora,” based on the real-life upstate New York prison escape of inmates Richard Matt and David Sweat in June 2015. Here are the five reasons why:
1. Serious awards cred
While the series from showrunners Michael Tolkin and Brett Johnson and director Ben Stiller scored rave reviews, it also racked up surprise awards earlier in the year, going against HBO favorite “Sharp Objects.” Arquette followed up her “Boyhood” Oscar win with Golden Globe and SAG awards for “Dannemora,” and at the Critics Choice Awards, tied with “Sharp Objects” star Amy Adams.
Since then “Sharp Objects” has faded in the rear view as “Dannemora” picks up steam. Gold Derby‘s panel of experts, for example, give Arquette the edge against movie stars Adams and another Oscar-winner,...
1. Serious awards cred
While the series from showrunners Michael Tolkin and Brett Johnson and director Ben Stiller scored rave reviews, it also racked up surprise awards earlier in the year, going against HBO favorite “Sharp Objects.” Arquette followed up her “Boyhood” Oscar win with Golden Globe and SAG awards for “Dannemora,” and at the Critics Choice Awards, tied with “Sharp Objects” star Amy Adams.
Since then “Sharp Objects” has faded in the rear view as “Dannemora” picks up steam. Gold Derby‘s panel of experts, for example, give Arquette the edge against movie stars Adams and another Oscar-winner,...
- 6/13/2019
- by Anne Thompson
- Indiewire
Brett Johnson and Oscar-nominated The Player scribe Michael Tolkin began working with each other as producer-writers on Ray Donovan and it was during that
series that they made an immediate go at adapting the true story about two inmates who escaped the maximum security Clinton Correctional facility in the quiet town of Dannemora in upstate New York. The twist? The inmates Richard Matt and David Sweat had help from a female prison worker, Joyce Tilly Mitchell, who was romantically involved with them. Johnson and Tolkin’s script would become the limited Showtime series Escape at Dannemora. Ben Stiller initially was attracted to the project, backed away, and then became intrigued again when the New York State Office of the Inspector General issued this 150 page report dissecting the prison break and aftermath. The human relationships combined with a prison break in this digital age were all too fascinating. Patricia Arquette took...
series that they made an immediate go at adapting the true story about two inmates who escaped the maximum security Clinton Correctional facility in the quiet town of Dannemora in upstate New York. The twist? The inmates Richard Matt and David Sweat had help from a female prison worker, Joyce Tilly Mitchell, who was romantically involved with them. Johnson and Tolkin’s script would become the limited Showtime series Escape at Dannemora. Ben Stiller initially was attracted to the project, backed away, and then became intrigued again when the New York State Office of the Inspector General issued this 150 page report dissecting the prison break and aftermath. The human relationships combined with a prison break in this digital age were all too fascinating. Patricia Arquette took...
- 6/13/2019
- by Anthony D'Alessandro
- Deadline Film + TV
Ben Stiller began his directorial career in 1994 with the Winona Ryder and Ethan Hawke rom-com “Reality Bites,” but it wasn’t until last year’s “Escape at Dannemora” that the multi-talented star finally helmed a project in which he didn’t also star.
During his keynote conversation at Variety‘s TV Summit, Stiller talked about how his interest in making “Escape at Dannemora” kept increasing as he heard more and more about the real-life prison escape, and how not acting in the series proved to be a blessing.
“I loved not acting. Every movie I’ve directed I’ve acted in,” Stiller said. “I had so much more of an appreciation from being able to work with the actors, I found that really enjoyable.”
His enjoyment is hardly surprising given the A-list talent, namely Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano and Benicio del Toro, he got to direct.
Dano and del Toro...
During his keynote conversation at Variety‘s TV Summit, Stiller talked about how his interest in making “Escape at Dannemora” kept increasing as he heard more and more about the real-life prison escape, and how not acting in the series proved to be a blessing.
“I loved not acting. Every movie I’ve directed I’ve acted in,” Stiller said. “I had so much more of an appreciation from being able to work with the actors, I found that really enjoyable.”
His enjoyment is hardly surprising given the A-list talent, namely Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano and Benicio del Toro, he got to direct.
Dano and del Toro...
- 6/12/2019
- by Will Thorne
- Variety Film + TV
Mark Ricker was literally in a prison of his own making. To tell the story of Richard Matt’s (Benicio Del Toro) and David Sweat’s (Paul Dano) infamous escape from the Clinton Correctional Facility in June 2015 on Showtime’s “Escape at Dannemora,” the production designer was tasked with replicating the prison as accurately as possible. After he signed on, “the next thing I know, I’m spending time in a prison for a year and a half,” Ricker quipped at Gold Derby’s Meet the Btl Experts: Production Design panel, moderated by this author (watch above).
But Ricker, a former Emmy nominee for “You Don’t Know Jack,” and the entire “Dannemora” team, led by director Ben Stiller, nearly didn’t get a chance to go inside the real thing until weeks from production was set to commence. The New York Department of Corrections “wanted nothing to do with us” because,...
But Ricker, a former Emmy nominee for “You Don’t Know Jack,” and the entire “Dannemora” team, led by director Ben Stiller, nearly didn’t get a chance to go inside the real thing until weeks from production was set to commence. The New York Department of Corrections “wanted nothing to do with us” because,...
- 6/6/2019
- by Joyce Eng
- Gold Derby
Variety selects memorable, Emmy eligible moments from the 2019-20 television season.
The Act (Hulu)
“Teeth”
Season 1, Episode 2
Gypsy (Joey King), a Munchausen by proxy victim, knows on some level that she doesn’t need all the medical assistance she’s been getting. But to live without it is a betrayal of her mother, and a step into the scary unknown. Her doctor (Poorna Jagannathan) offers Gypsy a soda to test her “sugar allergy” and, after agonizing thought, Gypsy refuses even to try it, saying in a strangled whisper, “My mom needs me.” It’s a choice that cements both her and her mother’s tragic fates.
Barry (HBO)
“ronny/lily”
Season 2, Episode 5
No moment in this perpetually strange series has so far been quite as startling as Barry’s (Bill Hader) confrontation with little Lily (Jessie Giacomazzi), a karate star whose focus, and whose ability to match Barry blow for blow,...
The Act (Hulu)
“Teeth”
Season 1, Episode 2
Gypsy (Joey King), a Munchausen by proxy victim, knows on some level that she doesn’t need all the medical assistance she’s been getting. But to live without it is a betrayal of her mother, and a step into the scary unknown. Her doctor (Poorna Jagannathan) offers Gypsy a soda to test her “sugar allergy” and, after agonizing thought, Gypsy refuses even to try it, saying in a strangled whisper, “My mom needs me.” It’s a choice that cements both her and her mother’s tragic fates.
Barry (HBO)
“ronny/lily”
Season 2, Episode 5
No moment in this perpetually strange series has so far been quite as startling as Barry’s (Bill Hader) confrontation with little Lily (Jessie Giacomazzi), a karate star whose focus, and whose ability to match Barry blow for blow,...
- 5/29/2019
- by Daniel D'Addario and Caroline Framke
- Variety Film + TV
“It was this amazing, insane story … Immediately we started spitballing, and before they were caught or captured we already had an outline for the entire limited series,” reveals Brett Johnson about how he and co-creator Michael Tolkin conceived of “Escape at Dannemora” while the real events were still unfolding. The seven-part Showtime drama recounts the 2015 prison escape by Richard Matt and David Sweat with the help of prison worker Joyce Mitchell. Watch our exclusive video interview with Johnson and Tolkin above.
“The great thing about limited series television is that it’s so novelistic. You can go deep into something, and you can end,” says Tolkin. That’s part of what drew him to this story and this format. He has a background as a novelist in addition to his Oscar-nominated (“The Player”) and Emmy-nominated (“The Burning Season”) screenwriting. “It’s very exciting telling a story with such rich characters...
“The great thing about limited series television is that it’s so novelistic. You can go deep into something, and you can end,” says Tolkin. That’s part of what drew him to this story and this format. He has a background as a novelist in addition to his Oscar-nominated (“The Player”) and Emmy-nominated (“The Burning Season”) screenwriting. “It’s very exciting telling a story with such rich characters...
- 5/2/2019
- by Daniel Montgomery
- Gold Derby
Although first submitted in lead alongside his “Escape at Dannemora” co-star Benicio del Toro, Paul Dano will now be contending in the Best Limited Series/TV Movie Supporting Actor category. Will his lead-to-supporting escape translate into an Emmy win?
In “Dannemora,” directed by Ben Stiller, Dano plays David Sweat, the real-life former inmate at Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate New York, who in 2015 helped his fellow inmate Richard Matt (del Toro) orchestrate an escape from the maximum-security prison. With the help of prison worker Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell (Patricia Arquette), both men managed to successfully escape. After a three-week manhunt, however, Matt was killed by the police while Sweat was captured and then sent to Auburn Correctional Facility, a new maximum-security prison.
Dano visibly transforms into Sweat, a man convicted for being involved in the killing of a police officer with two accomplices, as they were caught unloading looted firearms. Despite...
In “Dannemora,” directed by Ben Stiller, Dano plays David Sweat, the real-life former inmate at Clinton Correctional Facility in upstate New York, who in 2015 helped his fellow inmate Richard Matt (del Toro) orchestrate an escape from the maximum-security prison. With the help of prison worker Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell (Patricia Arquette), both men managed to successfully escape. After a three-week manhunt, however, Matt was killed by the police while Sweat was captured and then sent to Auburn Correctional Facility, a new maximum-security prison.
Dano visibly transforms into Sweat, a man convicted for being involved in the killing of a police officer with two accomplices, as they were caught unloading looted firearms. Despite...
- 3/29/2019
- by Luca Giliberti
- Gold Derby
Chances are you might not have known Patricia Arquette was in Showtime's Escape at Dannemora. Even her sister did. "My sister was saying that to me, 'You're my sister and I was forgetting you were you,'" Arquette told E! News' Jason Kennedy backstage at the 2019 Golden Globes after winning for her work as Joyce "Tilly" Mitchell. The series follows the real-life events of the 2015 Clinton Correctional Facility escape. Richard Matt (Benicio Del Toro in the serires) and David Sweat (played by Paul Dano) broke out of prison and were aided by Mitchell. Arquette not only looked different than she normally does, but she was so good 1. Viewers forgot it was her. 2. She won the Golden...
- 1/7/2019
- E! Online
The seventh episode of Showtime's Escape at Dannemora concluded the show's retelling of a real-life 2015 prison break in upstate New York, and the subsequent manhunt for escaped convicts Richard Matt (Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (Paul Dano). While the facts depicted in the finale are unambiguous — Matt and Sweat are recaptured, while corrections officer Joyce 'Tilly' Mitchell (Patricia Arquette) is arrested for assisting their escape — the final scene is a character beat left open to interpretation.
Having spent several episodes chronicling Tilly's sexual affairs with both Matt and Sweat prior to ...
Having spent several episodes chronicling Tilly's sexual affairs with both Matt and Sweat prior to ...
- 12/31/2018
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
[This interview contains spoilers for the Sunday, Dec. 30, finale of Showtime's Escape at Dannemora.]
It's been nearly 25 years since the release of Reality Bites, Ben Stiller's iconic (for a certain generation) feature directing debut. That film had a running time of 99 minutes, which coincidentally is also the length of the seventh part of Escape at Dannemora, Stiller's debut as limited series TV director.
Sunday's Escape at Dannemora finale brought the prison break drama full-circle, returning to newly liberated Richard Matt (Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (Paul Dano) following last week's flashback detour and ...
It's been nearly 25 years since the release of Reality Bites, Ben Stiller's iconic (for a certain generation) feature directing debut. That film had a running time of 99 minutes, which coincidentally is also the length of the seventh part of Escape at Dannemora, Stiller's debut as limited series TV director.
Sunday's Escape at Dannemora finale brought the prison break drama full-circle, returning to newly liberated Richard Matt (Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (Paul Dano) following last week's flashback detour and ...
- 12/31/2018
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
It’s been widely reported Ben Stiller wouldn’t sign on to direct “Escape at Dannemora” until the script was grounded in facts, but his responsibility to the story didn’t end there. Stiller has shown the seven-part Showtime limited series — recounting Richard Matt and David Sweat’s elaborate 2015 prison breakout — to a slew of the real people involved in the escape, including Matt’s daughter, the victims’ families, and New York state Inspector General Catherine Leahy Scott.
“One of the first things [the Inspector General] said to us when they saw it was they were really glad that Episode 6 was there,” Stiller said in an interview with IndieWire. “They felt it really made it clear that these two criminals were in prison for a reason; that these were not victimless crimes — these guys were murderers — and they felt it was responsible [to show that].”
Up until the penultimate episode, each entry of “Escape at Dannemora” proceeded in sequence,...
“One of the first things [the Inspector General] said to us when they saw it was they were really glad that Episode 6 was there,” Stiller said in an interview with IndieWire. “They felt it really made it clear that these two criminals were in prison for a reason; that these were not victimless crimes — these guys were murderers — and they felt it was responsible [to show that].”
Up until the penultimate episode, each entry of “Escape at Dannemora” proceeded in sequence,...
- 12/24/2018
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
Bedford Hills Correctional Facility inmate Joyce “Tillie” Mitchell has a bone to pick with Ben Stiller’s portrayal of her in his new Showtime series, “Escape at Dannemora,” which is based on a true story involving Mitchell and the two convicted murderers she helped break out of prison, leading to a multi-million dollar manhunt and the death of one of the inmates.
In an interview from prison, Mitchell (above left) — who is portrayed by Patricia Arquette (above right) on the drama — told the New York Post that she “never had sex” with the men, David Sweat (played by Paul Dano) and Richard Matt (played by Benicio Del Toro), which is a large plot point in “Escape at Dannemora.”
“Ben Stiller is a son-of-a-bitch liar just like the rest of the world,” Mitchell told the Post of the show’s director and executive producer. “He doesn’t care about the truth.
In an interview from prison, Mitchell (above left) — who is portrayed by Patricia Arquette (above right) on the drama — told the New York Post that she “never had sex” with the men, David Sweat (played by Paul Dano) and Richard Matt (played by Benicio Del Toro), which is a large plot point in “Escape at Dannemora.”
“Ben Stiller is a son-of-a-bitch liar just like the rest of the world,” Mitchell told the Post of the show’s director and executive producer. “He doesn’t care about the truth.
- 12/24/2018
- by Jennifer Maas
- The Wrap
After building up to and finally showing the long-awaited prison break in Episode 5, Escape at Dannemora's sixth episode flashed back and showed viewers how David Sweat (Paul Dano) and Richard Matt (Benicio Del Toro) ended up in the prison, as well as how Tilly (Patricia Arquette) and Lyle Mitchell
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Other Links From TVGuide.com Escape at DannemoraEric LangePatricia Arquette...
- 12/24/2018
- by Liam Mathews
- TVGuide - Breaking News
Exclusive: [Spoilers Ahead!] Showtime’s Golden Globe-nominated limited series Escape At Dannemora draws nearer to a close, as prisoners David Sweat (Paul Dano) and Richard Matt (Benicio Del Toro) get closer to escape while Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell (Patricia Arquette) wavers on her role in their crime. The episode lifted the veil on who the three of them really are, and it is not pretty. In fact, it is shocking and the only decision for viewers is to decide which one of them is more despicable. The series has drawn praise, but director and executive producer Ben Stiller awoke to find that the real Mitchell attacked him and the series from behind bars. In a front page jailhouse interview with the New York Post — the tabloid that several years ago coined her ‘Shawskank’ for allegedly helping the two prisoners escape after having sex with them and planning to bump off her prison employee...
- 12/24/2018
- by Mike Fleming Jr
- Deadline Film + TV
Showtime’s limited series “Escape at Dannemora” focuses on real-life escaped convicts Richard Matt (Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (Paul Dano) and the prison worker who aided their escape, Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell (Patricia Arquette). But when you have a pair of hardened criminals and the woman who is carrying on an affair with both of them, it’s hard to figure out who the viewers should be rooting for.
That’s where Lyle Mitchell, the unaware husband of Joyce, comes in. “He’s very much a sympathetic character in the show,” Eric Lange, who plays Lyle, tells TheWrap, describing him as the “human cost of this tabloid-sensationalized thing.”
Lyle was one of the people involved in the ordeal who the show’s producers never got to speak with, co-showrunners Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin had previously told TheWrap. Which makes sense. After all, would you want to speak about...
That’s where Lyle Mitchell, the unaware husband of Joyce, comes in. “He’s very much a sympathetic character in the show,” Eric Lange, who plays Lyle, tells TheWrap, describing him as the “human cost of this tabloid-sensationalized thing.”
Lyle was one of the people involved in the ordeal who the show’s producers never got to speak with, co-showrunners Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin had previously told TheWrap. Which makes sense. After all, would you want to speak about...
- 12/7/2018
- by Tim Baysinger
- The Wrap
In today’s TV News Roundup, “Game of Thrones” releases teaser video for the final season and the creator of “Doc McStuffins” signs a deal with Netflix
First Looks
Game of Thrones has released a teaser video for season 8, hinting at a clash between fire and ice in the final season airing in April 2019.
Fire and ice. #GoTS8 pic.twitter.com/ixHIsPjyhW
— Game Of Thrones (@GameOfThrones) December 6, 2018
Dates
Nickelodeon‘s new comedy series, “Cousins For Life,” premieres Saturday, Jan. 5 at 8:30 p.m. Et/Pt. The live action series follows Stuart (Dallas Dupree Young) and Ivy (Scarlet Spencer), a pair of 12 year old cousins navigating their two very different families living together under the same roof.
Oxygen Media will debut a two-hour crime special, “Dannemora Prison Break,” on Dec. 15 at 7 p.m. Et/Pt. Hosted by veteran correspondent Troy Roberts, the program details the shocking story of Richard Matt and...
First Looks
Game of Thrones has released a teaser video for season 8, hinting at a clash between fire and ice in the final season airing in April 2019.
Fire and ice. #GoTS8 pic.twitter.com/ixHIsPjyhW
— Game Of Thrones (@GameOfThrones) December 6, 2018
Dates
Nickelodeon‘s new comedy series, “Cousins For Life,” premieres Saturday, Jan. 5 at 8:30 p.m. Et/Pt. The live action series follows Stuart (Dallas Dupree Young) and Ivy (Scarlet Spencer), a pair of 12 year old cousins navigating their two very different families living together under the same roof.
Oxygen Media will debut a two-hour crime special, “Dannemora Prison Break,” on Dec. 15 at 7 p.m. Et/Pt. Hosted by veteran correspondent Troy Roberts, the program details the shocking story of Richard Matt and...
- 12/6/2018
- by Margeaux Sippell
- Variety Film + TV
(Warning: This story contains spoilers from the second episode of Showtime’s “Escape at Dannemora”)
Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin never strayed too far from the real-life events for Showtime’s “Escape at Dannemora,” which tells the story of Richard Matt and David Sweat’s breakout from a New York state prison in 2015.
But a couple of scenes in the second episode of the series shows Matt (Benicio del Toro) painting a portrait of then-presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, complete with a photo of her in his jail cell. So, we asked Johnson and Tolkin if that was indeed true. Did Matt, who had a hobby of painting celebrities and political figures while incarcerated, actually have a photo of Clinton in his cell?
The answer is yes … and no.
Also Read: 'Escape at Dannemora': Co-Creators Went 'Through the Looking Glass' to Research Prison Break Drama
“It’s not a real story,...
Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin never strayed too far from the real-life events for Showtime’s “Escape at Dannemora,” which tells the story of Richard Matt and David Sweat’s breakout from a New York state prison in 2015.
But a couple of scenes in the second episode of the series shows Matt (Benicio del Toro) painting a portrait of then-presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton, complete with a photo of her in his jail cell. So, we asked Johnson and Tolkin if that was indeed true. Did Matt, who had a hobby of painting celebrities and political figures while incarcerated, actually have a photo of Clinton in his cell?
The answer is yes … and no.
Also Read: 'Escape at Dannemora': Co-Creators Went 'Through the Looking Glass' to Research Prison Break Drama
“It’s not a real story,...
- 11/26/2018
- by Tim Baysinger
- The Wrap
In order to portray real-life prison-escape accomplice Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell for Showtime’s limited series “Escape at Dannemora,” based on the 2015 events, actress Patricia Arquette had to completely transform her physical appearance. She gained a significant amount of weight — mostly by introducing “a lot of milkshakes” into her diet, the actress says — but she also had the aid and artistry of makeup department head Bernadette Mazur.
“It’s always a challenge when you have to do a likeness or a resemblance, because you want to make a character, not a caricature,” Mazur says.
The goal for director Ben Stiller, whom Mazur has worked with on films including “Zoolander 2” and “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” was to be as true to life as possible. This meant Mazur had to “strip down” Arquette’s natural radiance.
Using photo references from Mitchell’s earlier life with her husband and son acquired by the series’ researcher,...
“It’s always a challenge when you have to do a likeness or a resemblance, because you want to make a character, not a caricature,” Mazur says.
The goal for director Ben Stiller, whom Mazur has worked with on films including “Zoolander 2” and “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty,” was to be as true to life as possible. This meant Mazur had to “strip down” Arquette’s natural radiance.
Using photo references from Mitchell’s earlier life with her husband and son acquired by the series’ researcher,...
- 11/22/2018
- by Danielle Turchiano
- Variety Film + TV
Although Showtime TV series earn small ratings in comparison to broadcast network programming, the premium cable network doesn't have to please advertisers, but rather, its paid subscribers. Can the Escape at Dannemora TV show hold its audience captive? If this winds up as a single-installment mini-series, how much do the Nielsen ratings matter? Will Escape at Dannemora be cancelled or renewed for season two? Stay tuned.
A Showtime prison drama, Escape at Dannemora stars Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano, Eric Lange, Bonnie Hunt, and David Morse. It is based on a 2015 real-life prison break from the Clinton Correctional Facility, in the village of Dannemora, New York. Richard Matt (Del Toro) is a self-taught artist, with a knack for painting portraits of celebrities. Matt’s co-conspirator, David Sweat (Dano), prefers to spend his time quietly but, beneath his aloof exterior, lurks a...
A Showtime prison drama, Escape at Dannemora stars Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano, Eric Lange, Bonnie Hunt, and David Morse. It is based on a 2015 real-life prison break from the Clinton Correctional Facility, in the village of Dannemora, New York. Richard Matt (Del Toro) is a self-taught artist, with a knack for painting portraits of celebrities. Matt’s co-conspirator, David Sweat (Dano), prefers to spend his time quietly but, beneath his aloof exterior, lurks a...
- 11/20/2018
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
Vulture Watch
Are Richard Matt and David Sweat home free? Has the Escape at Dannemora TV show been cancelled or renewed for a second season on Showtime? The television vulture is watching all the latest cancellation and renewal news, so this page is the place to track the status of Escape at Dannemora, season two. Bookmark it, or subscribe for the latest updates. Remember, the television vulture is watching your shows. Are you?
What's This TV Show About?
A Showtime crime drama, Escape at Dannemora stars Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano, Eric Lange, Bonnie Hunt, and David Morse. It is based on a 2015 real-life prison break from the Clinton Correctional Facility, in the village of Dannemora, New York. Richard Matt (Del Toro) is a self-taught artist, with a knack for painting portraits of celebrities. Matt’s co-conspirator, David Sweat...
Are Richard Matt and David Sweat home free? Has the Escape at Dannemora TV show been cancelled or renewed for a second season on Showtime? The television vulture is watching all the latest cancellation and renewal news, so this page is the place to track the status of Escape at Dannemora, season two. Bookmark it, or subscribe for the latest updates. Remember, the television vulture is watching your shows. Are you?
What's This TV Show About?
A Showtime crime drama, Escape at Dannemora stars Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano, Eric Lange, Bonnie Hunt, and David Morse. It is based on a 2015 real-life prison break from the Clinton Correctional Facility, in the village of Dannemora, New York. Richard Matt (Del Toro) is a self-taught artist, with a knack for painting portraits of celebrities. Matt’s co-conspirator, David Sweat...
- 11/20/2018
- by TVSeriesFinale.com
- TVSeriesFinale.com
In 2015, Richard Matt and David Sweat broke out of Clinton Correctional prison in the town of Dannemora, with the help of Tilly Mitchell. Matt was having an affair with workplace supervisor Mitchell and convinced her to help them escape. They probably never imagined how the breakout would bring them down, let alone become a […]
The post ‘Escape at Dannemora’ Writer Michael Tolkin Reveals How Soon The Prison Break Begins [Interview] appeared first on /Film.
The post ‘Escape at Dannemora’ Writer Michael Tolkin Reveals How Soon The Prison Break Begins [Interview] appeared first on /Film.
- 11/20/2018
- by Fred Topel
- Slash Film
$23 million. That's how much the twisted, complicated and ultimately deadly love triangle at the center Escape at Dannemora, Showtime's new limited series, ended up costing the state of New York. But that's the end of the story. Premiering on Sunday, Nov. 18 and directed by Ben Stiller, the eight-episode true crime drama tells the infamous story of the the 2015 Clinton Correctional Facility escape, one of the wildest prison breaks in U.S. history. On June 6, 2015, a national manhunt began when Richard Matt and David Sweat, two inmates serving life sentences for murder, were discovered missing at the Clinton Correctional Facility in...
- 11/18/2018
- E! Online
There is age-old adage that “truth is stranger than fiction,” which can definitely can be said about Showtime’s upcoming limited series, “Escape at Dannemora.”
But when trying to craft a scripted narrative from real-life events often finds the writers and directors behind it take creative liberties for dramatic effect (as critics of the Queen biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody” can attest to). But for Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin, who co-created the Showtime series that is based on a famous 2015 prison break, they didn’t have to veer too far from the real-life events.
“Once you get into the reality of the story, the pieces are just more fascinating than fiction can deliver sometimes,” Tolkin told TheWrap. “We definitely researched it a lot… Sometimes through the looking glass, in terms of research,” added Johnson.
Also Read: Showtime Launches Companion Podcast for Limited Series 'Escape at Dannemora' (Exclusive)
The limited series, which...
But when trying to craft a scripted narrative from real-life events often finds the writers and directors behind it take creative liberties for dramatic effect (as critics of the Queen biopic “Bohemian Rhapsody” can attest to). But for Brett Johnson and Michael Tolkin, who co-created the Showtime series that is based on a famous 2015 prison break, they didn’t have to veer too far from the real-life events.
“Once you get into the reality of the story, the pieces are just more fascinating than fiction can deliver sometimes,” Tolkin told TheWrap. “We definitely researched it a lot… Sometimes through the looking glass, in terms of research,” added Johnson.
Also Read: Showtime Launches Companion Podcast for Limited Series 'Escape at Dannemora' (Exclusive)
The limited series, which...
- 11/16/2018
- by Tim Baysinger
- The Wrap
Welcome to “Remote Controlled,” a podcast from Variety featuring the best and brightest in television, both in front of and behind the camera.
In this week’s episode, Variety’s business editor Cynthia Littleton and executive editor of TV Debra Birnbaum talk with Ben Stiller, Benicio Del Toro, Paul Dano, and Patricia Arquette about their new Showtime series “Escape at Dannemora.”
The eight-episode series follows the true story of two inmates, David Sweat and Richard Matt, who escaped from the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, New York, in 2015, spurring a three-and-a-half-week manhunt.
Director Stiller talks about getting direct permission from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to film in the actual location from which the inmates made their famous escape.
“You go to Clinton Correctional and you see the environment, you see how old the prison is, you see how long people have been working there,” Stiller says. “It’s really...
In this week’s episode, Variety’s business editor Cynthia Littleton and executive editor of TV Debra Birnbaum talk with Ben Stiller, Benicio Del Toro, Paul Dano, and Patricia Arquette about their new Showtime series “Escape at Dannemora.”
The eight-episode series follows the true story of two inmates, David Sweat and Richard Matt, who escaped from the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora, New York, in 2015, spurring a three-and-a-half-week manhunt.
Director Stiller talks about getting direct permission from New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to film in the actual location from which the inmates made their famous escape.
“You go to Clinton Correctional and you see the environment, you see how old the prison is, you see how long people have been working there,” Stiller says. “It’s really...
- 11/16/2018
- by Margeaux Sippell
- Variety Film + TV
In the summer of 2017, just weeks before Ben Stiller was scheduled to start filming Showtime’s limited series “Escape at Dannemora,” the director had a serious dilemma: He had nowhere to shoot the prison scenes.
For months, Stiller, who also serves as executive producer, and the “Dannemora” production team had been trying to gain access to New York’s largest maximum-security prison — the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora. Stiller wanted to shoot within and around the facility, which holds approximately 2,500 male inmates, but the organization that manages and operates the state’s prisons, the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, wasn’t biting.
But Stiller wasn’t taking no for an answer. The director was adamant about filming on the grounds and for good reason: The majority of “Dannemora,” the true story of Richard Matt and David Sweat’s prison break that was being adapted into an eight-part limited series,...
For months, Stiller, who also serves as executive producer, and the “Dannemora” production team had been trying to gain access to New York’s largest maximum-security prison — the Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora. Stiller wanted to shoot within and around the facility, which holds approximately 2,500 male inmates, but the organization that manages and operates the state’s prisons, the Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, wasn’t biting.
But Stiller wasn’t taking no for an answer. The director was adamant about filming on the grounds and for good reason: The majority of “Dannemora,” the true story of Richard Matt and David Sweat’s prison break that was being adapted into an eight-part limited series,...
- 11/15/2018
- by Addie Morfoot
- Variety Film + TV
Ben Stiller and Patricia Arquette spent enough time at prisons while filming Showtime’s upcoming limited series “Escape at Dannemora” to know at least two things.
The first seems obvious enough: prison is terrifying. The second was that these institutions are in dire need of some restructuring.
“It’s a really broken system, and everyone knows it,” Stiller told Variety at the premiere of “Escape at Dannemora” at Lincoln Center in New York City. “There are so many factors. It’s a very complicated problem.”
Stiller directed and executive produced “Escape at Dannemora,” the stranger than fiction account of Richard Matt and David Sweat’s escape from New York’s largest maximum-security prison, Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora. The real 2015 prison break spawned a massive — and massively expensive — manhunt for two convicted murderers who were able to get away with the help of a female prison employee they had become romantically entangled with.
The first seems obvious enough: prison is terrifying. The second was that these institutions are in dire need of some restructuring.
“It’s a really broken system, and everyone knows it,” Stiller told Variety at the premiere of “Escape at Dannemora” at Lincoln Center in New York City. “There are so many factors. It’s a very complicated problem.”
Stiller directed and executive produced “Escape at Dannemora,” the stranger than fiction account of Richard Matt and David Sweat’s escape from New York’s largest maximum-security prison, Clinton Correctional Facility in Dannemora. The real 2015 prison break spawned a massive — and massively expensive — manhunt for two convicted murderers who were able to get away with the help of a female prison employee they had become romantically entangled with.
- 11/15/2018
- by Rebecca Rubin
- Variety Film + TV
Richard Matt and David Sweat’s 2015 upstate New York prison break was compared to The Shawshank Redemption because the duo cut through the walls of their cells and took a long tunnel to freedom. But if their methods were cinematic, their personalities — and that of Joyce “Tilly” Mitchell, the prison employee who helped them — were far from it, which presents a stumbling block for Showtime’s otherwise entertaining Escape at Dannemora. The seven-part miniseries — it debuts on Nov. 18th — has abundant talent in front of the camera and behind it.
- 11/14/2018
- by Alan Sepinwall
- Rollingstone.com
When we meet Joyce Mitchell, she’s at a low moment, being questioned about her role in a prison breakout. She’s combative, bristling and insistent on being called by her nickname, Tilly, and evidently dissembling under the gaze of the state’s inspector general (Bonnie Hunt). When we shift back in time to see how her troubles began, there’s no discontinuity or rupture; the character we’ve met under duress lives her life in a state of simmering rage. It’s a credit to Patricia Arquette’s performance, and to “Escape at Dannemora,” that Tilly feels as credible as the real person she is; Arquette makes “Dannemora” worth sticking with even as the show’s running time grows punishing.
The Dannemora breakout — the 2015 escape of two inmates from a maximum-security facility in New York in which the actual Tilly Mitchell was convicted for her role — is elementally fascinating.
The Dannemora breakout — the 2015 escape of two inmates from a maximum-security facility in New York in which the actual Tilly Mitchell was convicted for her role — is elementally fascinating.
- 11/13/2018
- by Daniel D'Addario
- Variety Film + TV
Ben Stiller and Patricia Arquette were co-stars in David O. Russell’s 1996 “Flirting With Disaster.” At the time, Stiller’s directing career limited to “The Ben Stiller Show” and “Reality Bites;” his now-cult favorite “The Cable Guy” was about to flop. Arquette was a burgeoning star and indie film darling thanks to her work in “True Romance” and “Ed Wood,” but she had yet to snag her Oscar, let alone the preceding Golden Globe and Emmy nominations.
Now the two are reinventing themselves, again. Each transform for the viewer in real time — figuratively for Stiller, quite literally with Arquette — in “Escape at Dannemora,” Showtime’s seven-part limited series about two inmates breaking out of the Clinton Correctional facility in 2015 and the woman who helped them do it. It’s Stiller’s first real drama as a director, and he’s created a thriller with the cold, blue look and feel...
Now the two are reinventing themselves, again. Each transform for the viewer in real time — figuratively for Stiller, quite literally with Arquette — in “Escape at Dannemora,” Showtime’s seven-part limited series about two inmates breaking out of the Clinton Correctional facility in 2015 and the woman who helped them do it. It’s Stiller’s first real drama as a director, and he’s created a thriller with the cold, blue look and feel...
- 11/13/2018
- by Ben Travers
- Indiewire
Showtime is launching a companion podcast for its upcoming limited series from Ben Stiller, “Escape at Dannemora,” that will delve into the real-life events that inspired the drama.
The limited series, which is directed and executive produced by Stiller, is based on the 2015 prison break from Clinton Correctional Facility. Two escapees — both convicted murderers — broke out of the Upstate New York facility, aided by a married female prison employee who reportedly carried on affairs with both men while supervising them in the tailor shop. It spawned the largest manhunt in the history of New York State.
The podcast, which is produced by Wondery’s Real Crime Profile, will dive deeper into the real-life events and feature interviews with cast-members, real people involved in the case and the creators.
Also Read: Seth MacFarlane, Sienna Miller Among 4 New Additions to Showtime's Roger Ailes Miniseries
The first two episodes feature interviews with executive...
The limited series, which is directed and executive produced by Stiller, is based on the 2015 prison break from Clinton Correctional Facility. Two escapees — both convicted murderers — broke out of the Upstate New York facility, aided by a married female prison employee who reportedly carried on affairs with both men while supervising them in the tailor shop. It spawned the largest manhunt in the history of New York State.
The podcast, which is produced by Wondery’s Real Crime Profile, will dive deeper into the real-life events and feature interviews with cast-members, real people involved in the case and the creators.
Also Read: Seth MacFarlane, Sienna Miller Among 4 New Additions to Showtime's Roger Ailes Miniseries
The first two episodes feature interviews with executive...
- 11/6/2018
- by Tim Baysinger
- The Wrap
The jailbreak drama inspired by real-life events is produced by Showtime and handled internationally by CBS Studios.
Us actor and director Ben Stiller touched down at Mipcom on Monday evening (Oct 15) to unveil the first episode of his upcoming drama series Escape At Dannemora on the big screen in Cannes Palais des Festivals.
“This is sort of a dream for me to see that on a big screen because we always thought of it pretty cinematically so it’s exciting to see it that size,” said Stiller, who takes executive producer and director credits on the series, produced by Showtime...
Us actor and director Ben Stiller touched down at Mipcom on Monday evening (Oct 15) to unveil the first episode of his upcoming drama series Escape At Dannemora on the big screen in Cannes Palais des Festivals.
“This is sort of a dream for me to see that on a big screen because we always thought of it pretty cinematically so it’s exciting to see it that size,” said Stiller, who takes executive producer and director credits on the series, produced by Showtime...
- 10/16/2018
- by Melanie Goodfellow
- ScreenDaily
Cannes — Showtime’s limited series “Escape at Dannemora” marks a departure for Ben Stiller as a director, by design as he tackled eight hours of the stranger-than-fiction story of the 2015 prison break in upstate New York that led to a three-week manhunt.
During a Q&A after Monday’s world premiere screening of “Dannemora” at Mipcom, Stiller said he sought to evoke the gritty tension of some of his favorite 1970s crime dramas a la “Dog Day Afternoon,” “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3” and “Straight Time.” The drama starring Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette and Paul Dano, revolves around two inmates who hacked their way of a prison in Dannemora, N.Y., with help from a female prison official who had a sexual relationship with both men.
“I was taken by the combination of elements in it,” Stiller said of the series that bows Nov. 18. “It wasn’t just a genre piece.
During a Q&A after Monday’s world premiere screening of “Dannemora” at Mipcom, Stiller said he sought to evoke the gritty tension of some of his favorite 1970s crime dramas a la “Dog Day Afternoon,” “The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3” and “Straight Time.” The drama starring Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette and Paul Dano, revolves around two inmates who hacked their way of a prison in Dannemora, N.Y., with help from a female prison official who had a sexual relationship with both men.
“I was taken by the combination of elements in it,” Stiller said of the series that bows Nov. 18. “It wasn’t just a genre piece.
- 10/15/2018
- by Cynthia Littleton
- Variety Film + TV
Ben Stiller on Monday night premiered his Showtime limited series Escape at Dannemora in Cannes.
But that was before the Zoolander star revealed he initially didn't want to direct the jailbreak drama based on a real-life 2015 prison escape by murderers Richard Matt and David Sweat, who were on the lam in upstate New York after becoming romantically involved with prison guard Joyce Mitchell.
The eight-parter, which stars Benicio del Toro, Patricia Arquette and Paul Dano, was written by Brett Johnson (Mad Men) and Michael Tolkin (The Player). Stiller told a Palais des Festivals audience during a Q&A after ...
But that was before the Zoolander star revealed he initially didn't want to direct the jailbreak drama based on a real-life 2015 prison escape by murderers Richard Matt and David Sweat, who were on the lam in upstate New York after becoming romantically involved with prison guard Joyce Mitchell.
The eight-parter, which stars Benicio del Toro, Patricia Arquette and Paul Dano, was written by Brett Johnson (Mad Men) and Michael Tolkin (The Player). Stiller told a Palais des Festivals audience during a Q&A after ...
- 10/15/2018
- The Hollywood Reporter - Film + TV
You may or may not remember a story from a few years ago about two men who broke out of prison in upstate New York with the help of an employee who was having an affair with them. After a 20-day manhunt, the men were captured. Well, that story is coming to Showtime as a new series called Escape From Dannemora and it was directed by Ben Stiller.
The film also boasts a fantastic cast that includes Benicio Del Toro as the mastermind behind the breakout, Paul Dano as the other convict, and Patricia Arquette as the prison employee who helped them escape. I also have to say that Arquette is completely unrecognizable! She completely transformed herself for this role! It's kinda scary.
The first trailer for the series has been released by Showtime and you can watch it below. It looks great! Here's the synopsis:
Escape at Dannemora is...
The film also boasts a fantastic cast that includes Benicio Del Toro as the mastermind behind the breakout, Paul Dano as the other convict, and Patricia Arquette as the prison employee who helped them escape. I also have to say that Arquette is completely unrecognizable! She completely transformed herself for this role! It's kinda scary.
The first trailer for the series has been released by Showtime and you can watch it below. It looks great! Here's the synopsis:
Escape at Dannemora is...
- 8/8/2018
- by Joey Paur
- GeekTyrant
In 2015, Richard Matt and David Sweat escaped from the Clinton Correctional Facility in New York and were on the run for several weeks, and it was later revealed that they had been aided by female prison employee Joyce "Tilly" Mitchell who had carried on an affair with both men. Showtime has transformed the riviting true-story into a limited-series which stars Benicio del Toro (Sicario: Day Of The Soldado) as Richard Matt, Paul Dano (There Will Be Blood) as David Sweat, and... Read More...
- 8/8/2018
- by Kevin Fraser
- JoBlo.com
‘Escape At Dannemora’ Panel Describes Desolation And Boredom That Triggered Captivating Prison Break
Showtime’s Escape at Dannemora director Ben Stiller was in Italy filming in 2015 when the rest of us were glued to TV news reports of the upstate New York prison break that spawned a massive manhunt for convicted killers Richard Matt and David Sweat.
In the eight-hour limited series debuting Sunday, November 18, they’re played by Benecio del Toro and Paul Dano.
Writer/EPs Brett Johnson (Mad Men) and Michael Tolkin (The Player) told TCA-ers they began working on the project five days into the wild break executed by these two prisoners who had formed some sort of relationship through painting, and who were assisted in their escape by prison tailor with whom both men were having sex. Tilly Mitchell is played by Patricia Arquette.
Stiller initially passed on the opportunity to direct, feeling there weren’t enough facts in the writing which the writers said they could not...
In the eight-hour limited series debuting Sunday, November 18, they’re played by Benecio del Toro and Paul Dano.
Writer/EPs Brett Johnson (Mad Men) and Michael Tolkin (The Player) told TCA-ers they began working on the project five days into the wild break executed by these two prisoners who had formed some sort of relationship through painting, and who were assisted in their escape by prison tailor with whom both men were having sex. Tilly Mitchell is played by Patricia Arquette.
Stiller initially passed on the opportunity to direct, feeling there weren’t enough facts in the writing which the writers said they could not...
- 8/7/2018
- by Lisa de Moraes
- Deadline Film + TV
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