WARNING: Stop reading if you have not watched the series finale of Prison Break. I mean it. Everyone else, onward and downward…
I know. Since Prison Break concluded its four-year run tonight by sending its chiseled protagonist to the big slammer in the sky, you’re grieving. You want answers. You want justice. You want someone to pay.
Would you settle for answers?
‘Cause that’s all I’ve got. But at least there are a lot of ’em, straight from executive producer Matt Olmstead. Read ’em and… oh, I see. You’re already weeping. Well, read ’em, anyway. Maybe it’ll help.
Why’d you have to kill him?!
MATT OLMSTEAD: It started as a discussion with Wentwoth [Miller] around Season 2. He brought up a good point: His character’s hands are as dirty as anyone’s. If you look at the initial act that he committed — robbing a bank to get into prison to break his brother out — there were ramifications to that; a lot of people got hurt. Not by them, but when they rattled the cage of the company that was after them, the body count started to pile out. And Michael was aware of this. And we’ve addressed his guilt throughout the show. But at a certain point, it felt nobler to have the character die so that others could live. It just felt a little weird for us to have Michael and Sara holding hands on the beach walking away — though that would be gratifying in the moment. Knowing that there was pretty much a scorched path behind them in terms of what happened, [having him die] balanced the books for us. He also paid the ultimate sacrifice and, in doing so, everyone else close to him was able to live, including his child.
Michael-Sara fans will argue that they deserved a happy ending after watching these two go to hell and back for four seasons. What would you say to them?
OLMSTEAD: For me, it is a happy ending. Look at the very first episode of the season when Michael realizes Sara’s alive. They have a chance to run away, and they both elect not to because, as two people of conscience, they can’t live with what they both now have experienced. And at the end of the finale, when they’re on the beach and talking about the baby that’s coming, that’s a huge victory in that they both stood their ground and, with the help of other people, brought down the ultimate antagonist. So they have their moment.
Can we assume that we’ll learn more about the ultimate sacrifice Michael made in the two-hour direct-to-DVD prequel movie [due July 28]?
OLMSTEAD: Yes, it dramatizes what happened to Michael. The nose bleed that reared its ugly head at the end of [tonight’s finale] was a factor in his ultimate demise in that he knew that he probably didn’t have that long to live, but it wasn’t the sole factor. It informed certain decisions that lead to his demise.
The two-hour movie picks up right after the finale, right?
OLMSTEAD: Yeah, it takes place fairly soon after they’re exonerated.
What’s the premise?
OLMSTEAD: Sara is on the hook for [killing] Michael’s mother and she gets locked up while pregnant. The tables are turned… once a doctor in prison now imprisoned, and Michael’s on the outside. The majority of the cast is back. It’s Michael, Lincoln, Sara, Sucre, T-Bag, Mahone… all the heavy-hitters.
Seeing Paul Adelstein back as Kellerman was a nice surprise. How’d that come about?
OLMSTEAD: We reached out to Paul and pitched him the idea of what his character would be doing, and he liked it very much. And then I told him that we would be jumping ahead four years to show where all the characters are, and I asked him where he would want [Kellerman] to be; he was included in the [creative process]. We traded a lot of e-mails and the ideas ran the gamut. We ultimately arrived at what it was, which is he rose to a position of power, but that the widow of his [former] partner that he killed revisits him. In the scene I wrote, she spits on his shoes. [On the day of shooting], I got a call from the director, Kevin Hooks, and he said, “Paul’s here, and he [thinks] she would spit in his face.” And I said, “Have at it.” So she spit in his face. And then he’s in the limo afterward and you can see that private moment where [he realizes] he can never outrun his past. That’s one of my favorite sequences in the flash-forward. He played the self-loathing and regret beautifully.
Did you encounter any problems getting ABC to loan him to you since he’s now on Private Practice?
OLMSTEAD: Everybody was very accommodating, and I think it all stems from a universal goodwill towards Paul as a person. He’s a really good guy and people wanted to do him a favor. And we were able to get all his scenes done in one day.
Was there anyone you wanted to get back for the finale and couldn’t?
OLMSTEAD: The only person we couldn’t get was Marshall Allman, who played Lincoln’s son. We would have loved to have gotten him.
Looking back on the four seasons, anything you would have done differently?
OLMSTEAD: I don’t have a whole lot of regrets. [Another journalist] wrote that we left it all out on the field by the end of the series, and I feel the same way. Every story was exhausted. Every creative juice wrung out. It was a completely worthwhile experience, and I know the other writers [agree]. It was a difficult show to pull off, and we did it.
Source: http://ausiellofiles.ew.com/
Posted on May 27, 2009
it was absolutely heart breaking to see Michael’s grave,i couldn’t just stop crying and believe that he’s dead. i was half dead and could not eat or do anything after that. i just want to say ask how can killing the protagonist be a happy ending,the writer just left the people grieving,in pain…….. this was not a happy ending at all,he was good man, Sara deserved to be happy after all that she went through and she did all that to be with Michael……. this is unfair and unjustified.
Posted on May 28, 2009
i agree with deepa after 10 days we saw last episode ican’t forget it and i am very depressed.do the writers like to bother the viewers .from the first episode we wait for micheal and sara’s good times with love and…..but just at that moment they killed michel.maybe a 2 hours film will be great with a bad ending but a searie like P.B with full of stress will be great with happy ending
Posted on May 29, 2009
It was sad to see michael die, after being the goos samaritan through out the show, however, i think it was also right to see him leave as he came – breaking someone out of prison. Michaels actions represent every other father out there to do anything to protect their child, the ending to the best show on earth was certainly memorable
Posted on June 01, 2009
I’ve just watched the Final Break.
I don’t deny it’s a great ending to an amazing show,PB is the best show ever,but I insist the writers could let Michael live and it would still realistic.
They didn’t care about us as loyal fans.
The end could be great with a happy ending 4 Michael.IMO it’s soooooooooooo sad ..soooooooooooo tragic & even worse than any movie because we just watch any movie 4 just 2 or 3 hours ,but we have been living with PB almost 4 years.
It was like a fantastic dream & then we woke up suddenly realizing that was just a nightmare.
I don’t & I’ll never never forgive the writers how they could be so crul with us like this
Most of us r so disappointed about Michael’s loss…but any way it’s more than a great show
Posted on June 02, 2009
Am seriously down and depressed with the way PB ended.The writers should have put (WE)loyal fans into consideration,that killing Michael at the end of the show will be devastating.He has sacrificed to much,he deserved to live happily ever after.
Posted on June 02, 2009
i’m totally agree with you Heba 🙁 , it’s sooooo saddddd 🙁
Posted on June 04, 2009
i was among the guys who were waiting to see Michael out of the church tunnel,alas he never made it,it was the worst part for me in that season,i never even believed my own eyes,after Micheal working a lot in the movie
Posted on June 04, 2009
happy ending, really 4 whom
i mean linc lost his brother sara lost her husband mike Jr lost father n a possibility of stable family life. sara is still fugitive Micheal end up as criminal.
only agent mohane n agent paul get their life back. they call this happy ending
also i dont understand why micheal said “they r finally free”b/c to my knowledge this phrase is used when everything ends well.
also if they want2 kill mike it is not necessary 2 bring back his tumor his character was selfless i know he died during rescue mission but he can sacrifice his life 4 his love ones with or without tumor it seems more suiside 2 me then sacrifice
writers really messed up a good show
Posted on June 05, 2009
i do agree so much with Heba.the writer did not care about the fans of sara and micheal all i wanted was to see them happy and free from this company stuff.PB is a movie that i love so much.who ever came up with this is ginius.Nice job.
Posted on June 14, 2009
I’ve just watched the final break, but I haven’t finished it.
Knowing what will happen in the end, wonldn’t make me like to watch it any more.
It’s not happy ending for the Michael and Sara, I think Michael and Sara should be happy together for the long life time, after the whole terrible thing they’ve been trought.
It may be a best ending for the man who did the something wrong for the right reason in the opinion of the writer, but it’s not the best ending for me and another Michael and Sara’s Fans.