The Company (Prison Break)
The Company is a fictional covert organization featured in the American television drama/thriller series Prison Break.
"The Company" is a secret group of multinationals known only by those who work for them. Its influence and power over individuals stretches to the White House, controlling every decision the country makes.[1] Its main goal is to attain control over the country's economy. With Caroline Reynolds (Patricia Wettig), the former Vice President of the United States in their grasp, "The Company" held control over the government's sway on the energy bill and subsequently, the country's economy. However, "The Company" considers every individual who works for them a pawn to achieve their goals.
Template:Spoiler Its desperate need to attain control of the country's economy eventuated in illegal dealings through Caroline Reynolds' brother's company, Ecofield. When one of their employees leaked information about Ecofield into the public, "The Company" went to incredible lengths to capture him. This man was Aldo Burrows (Anthony Denison). In order to bring him out into the open, "The Company" masterminded a conspiracy and used Caroline Reynolds' power as the Vice President to convict his son, Lincoln Burrows of Terrence Steadman's murder, thus framing an innocent Lincoln.
"The Company" became increasingly worried about Caroline Reynolds chances at winning the presidential elections after her support started to plummet in the polls. After Reynolds lost President Richard Mills' confidence and the support for a key energy bill, "The Company" decided to cut her off and advised her to drop out of the race, or they would have to make her. They were greatly surprised when Reynolds had the President killed shortly thereafter (disguising it as a heart-attack) and was then sworn in as the next President of the United States.
The Company has taken a direct role in the hunt for the Fox River Eight, and has appointed William Kim to lead these efforts. Kim is in direct contact with FBI Special Agent Alexander Mahone, the leader of the manhunt. Kim also seems to have arranged for Mahone to lead the manhunt. Mahone is under blackmail from Kim and The Company and has secret orders to kill all the fugitives. Kim also functions as a way of cutting Reynolds off from everything regarding Lincoln Burrows as well as her lackey Paul Kellerman. In the eyes of The Company Kellerman was a loose end who was unloyal and dangerous, allowed to exist only as long as he remained useful. Isolating him from Reynolds was the first step in his eventual elimination and the mysterious Pad Man, a powerful man in The Company, would later order Kim to "retire" Kellerman. This plot would backfire horribly.
When Michael successfully blackmailed Reynolds into a Presidential pardon for him and his brother with a tape revealing her incestuous relationship with her brother, Kim told her just before the press conference that the Company could expose her secrets just as easily as Michael. As a result, the President instead announced she had a malignant form of cancer which would cause her to resign the Presidency and drop out of the race.
Operatives
- Samantha Brinker, portrayed by Michelle Forbes, is a highly ranked operative who acted as an intermediary between "The Company" and the then-Vice President, Caroline Reynolds. She seems to be a mid-level executive, above the hitmen like Quinn but below the real bosses, whom she is seen reporting to in the episode Go
- Jane Phillps, portrayed by Kristin Lehman, is a former operative who left "The Company" to join Aldo Burrows in the hope of bringing down "The Company".
- Aldo Burrows, portrayed by Anthony Denison, is the father of Lincoln Burrows and Michael Scofield, who are the protagonists of the series. He left "The Company" and has attempted to gather enough evidence since then to destroy "The Company". He was later killed by F.B.I. Special Agent Alexander Mahone, who was forced to work with "The Company".
- William Kim, portrayed by Reggie Lee, is a Secret Service agent who is working for a man known as the "Pad Man".
- Quinn, portrayed by Michael Gaston, was an agent of "The Company", assigned to track down L. J. Burrows, Veronica Donovan and Nick Savrinn. He was later pushed into a well by L. J. and left to die by Paul Kellerman and Daniel Hale.
- Tangrin, portrayed by Jacqueline Williams, is an operative who disguised herself as a reporter named Sue Parsons in order to threaten Lincoln Burrows to stop risking his son's life by pursuing the truth of the murder setup.
- Unnamed operatives
The following names are those used in the episode credits.
- "Agent Blondie", portrayed by Steven Chester Prince, is an agent who works for Agent Kim and was assigned to secure Terrence Steadman's location. He later killed Veronica Donovan and attempted to frame Sara Tancredi's suicide. After arranging the hit-and-run accident of Alexander Mahone's son, he was killed by Mahone.
- "Pad Man", portrayed by Leon Russom, is the apparant leader of "The Company" and is the superior of Agent William Kim. He has spoken very little, preferring to hand terse notes to Kim.
References
- ^ Dialogue spoken by Anthony Denison as Aldo Burrows, Prison Break season 1 episode 19, "The Key".
See also
External links
- Prison Break's official site at Fox.com