Lincoln Burrows
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Prison Break character | |
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| Lincoln Burrows | |
| Role(s): | Prisoner; Fugitive |
| Current status: | Active |
| Sentence at Fox River Prison: |
Death by electrocution for first degree murder (Exonerated) |
| Family: | L. J. Burrows (son), Aldo Burrows (father), Christina Rose Scofield (mother), Michael Scofield (brother) |
| Appearances | |
| First appearance: | S1E01 |
| Season: | 1, 2 |
| Portrayed by: | Dominic Purcell, Max Kirsch (young Lincoln), Hunter Jablonski (young Lincoln) |
Lincoln Burrows, played by Dominic Purcell, is a protagonist of the American television series, Prison Break. The plot of Prison Break revolves around Lincoln Burrows' setup for the murder of the vice president's brother and his brother's plan to help him escape his death sentence. Lincoln's brother, Michael Scofield is played by Wentworth Miller. In episode flashbacks, the teenage Lincoln is played by Max Kirsch, while a younger Lincoln is portrayed by Hunter Jablonski.
As one of the principal characters, Lincoln plays a prominent role in the series and has appeared in every episode so far. The brother's relationship is frequently explored in the series as their sacrifices for each other form a large part of the plot. In an interview, series creator Paul Scheuring commented that it was "extremely difficult" to cast the roles of Lincoln and Michael.[1] Dominic Purcell was cast for the role just three days before the start of production of the series pilot.[2]
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[edit] Background
After their mother's death, Lincoln became Michael's guardian. Lincoln dropped out of Morgan Park High School in Toledo, Ohio during his sophomore year and moved to Chicago to begin his life of crime. Prior to being convicted for the murder of the Vice President's brother, he had been convicted of theft, criminal damage to property, possession of drug paraphernalia, and battery.[3] He and Lisa Rix had a son together, Lincoln Burrows, Jr. (L.J.) (played by Marshall Allman).
When Michael was 18, Lincoln borrowed $90,000 to pay for Michael's university education, telling him that it was his half of his mother's life insurance. There really was no life insurance and this money was the start of the events which ultimately led to Lincoln being sentenced to death. This was revealed in the flashback episode, "Brother's Keeper". Lincoln's actions instigates Michael's feeling of guilt and responsibility, which explains his reason for creating an elaborate plan to rescue his brother.
[edit] Appearances
[edit] Season 1
Lincoln is accused of murdering the vice president's brother, Terrence Steadman. Although he pled not guilty at the trial, he was convicted on all counts and sentenced to death due to an overwhelming amount of evidence. After exhausting all of his appeals, his execution date was set for May 11th.
Throughout the first season, Lincoln is seen locked up in his cell, which coincidentally in real life, is the same cell that John Wayne Gacy was incarcerated in during his time at Joliet Prison.[4] After a surprise meeting with his brother inside the prison's chapel in the series pilot, Lincoln becomes hopeful of Michael's plan to help him escape. Particularly in the first few episodes, Lincoln warns Michael's of the dangers in the prison and that he should be aware of his fellow inmates. As the season progresses, Lincoln's relationships with his son, L. J., and Veronica Donovan (played by Robin Tunney) grow stronger as they both attempt to help him find evidence to exonerate him. When the first escape attempt fails on the night before his execution, Lincoln resigns to his fate. However, his execution date was delayed with the help of his father, Aldo Burrows (played by Anthony Denison), who he later meets. Aldo later explains to Lincoln that the murder setup of Terrence Steadman may have been caused his desolation of "The Company" after taking information with him about Steadman's company, Ecofield. In various episodes, Lincoln is faced with several attempts on his life by fellow inmates and Paul Kellerman (played by Paul Adelstein). The first season finale finally sees Lincoln and his brother outside the prison.
[edit] Season 2
The character is featured more prominently in the second season than the first. Along with his brother and the other escapees in the season premiere, Lincoln successfully evades Brad Bellick (played by Wade Williams) and his guards. Outside the prison, Lincoln's first priority is to find his son. After a failed impromptu prison-break plan rescue L. J., Lincoln and his brother journey to Utah to retrieve Charles Westmoreland's five million dollars. Lincoln's anxiety for L. J. causes conflicts with Michael, who wants to follow his plan. Eventually, Lincoln leaves Michael to find L. J. but discovers that he is still a target of "The Company". Lincoln's father again comes to his son's rescue. After reassured of L. J.'s safety, Lincoln travels with his father to meet Michael. Aldo is later killed by F.B.I. agent Alexander Mahone (played by William Fichtner), which prompts Michael and Lincoln to stop running and to find evidence to expose "The Company" by searching for Sara Tancredi (played Sarah Wayne Callies). Lincoln and Michael are aided by Paul Kellerman, who in an act of self preservation, turns against "The Company".
In the second season's episode "John Doe" (which was the first episode to be aired in 2007), Lincoln comes face to face with Terrence Steadman, the man he was convicted of murdering. Steadman commits suicide and forces Lincoln and Michael to look for an alternative way to prove Lincoln's innocence. Lincoln, Michael and Kellerman find Sara and together, they head back to Chicago, where Sara's father, Frank Tancredi (played by John Heard), had hidden the USB drive which holds a recorded conversation between Caroline Reynolds and Terrence Steadman after his supposed death date. When the tape proved to be useless as evidence, Lincoln and Michael attempted to blackmail President Caroline Reynolds (played by Patricia Wettig). When this also fails, Lincoln and Michael are forced to leave the country. Lincoln's exoneration finally comes through when Paul Kellerman decides to testify against "The Company". The brothers' joy was short-lived when Bill Kim (played by Reggie Lee) tracks them down in Panama and has orders to kill "one of them". Sara shoots Kim, allowing them to escape.
[edit] Production details
Ironically, Paul Adelstein, who plays Lincoln's nemesis for the first 35 episodes, Paul Kellerman, originally auditioned for the role of Lincoln.
[edit] References
- ^ Australian Associated Press, "Prison Break success shocks creator", Sydney Morning Herald. January 27, 2006. Retrieved on April 7, 2007.
- ^ Mitovich, M. W., "Prison Break DVD News, Season 2 Preview!", TV Guide. August 8, 2006. Retrieved on April 7, 2007.
- ^ Lincoln Burrows' biography Fox Broadcasting Company.
- ^ Ryan, M, "Joliet prison is a 'Break'-out star", The Chicago Tribune. August 24, 2005. Retrieved on April 7, 2007.
[edit] External links
- Lincoln Burrows' biography at Fox.com
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Prison Break characters
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| Main characters |
| John Abruzzi | Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell | Brad Bellick | Lincoln Burrows | L. J. Burrows | Veronica Donovan Benjamin Miles "C-Note" Franklin | Paul Kellerman | Alexander Mahone | Michael Scofield | Fernando Sucre | Sara Tancredi |
| Secondary characters |
| David "Tweener" Apolskis | Hector Avila | Aldo Burrows | Maricruz Delgado | Roy Geary | Daniel Hale | William Kim | Charles "Haywire" Patoshik | Henry Pope Caroline Reynolds | Manche Sanchez | Nick Savrinn | Terrence Steadman | Frank Tancredi | Nika Volek | Charles Westmoreland |
| List of Prison Break characters | List of Prison Break minor characters |
