Summary
The true crime drama series,Escape At Dannemorahas just landed onNetflix, and it tells the true story of a prison break. Netflix is always adding true crime drama series to their platform, andthis Showtime hit from 2018 has caught the attention of fans of the popular sub-genre.There are seven episodes in the limited series, and all of them were directed by Ben Stiller.
Escape At Dannemoraalso features a star-studded cast consisting of Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette and Paul Dano, who play the central characters embroiled in the complicated story. It actually has echoes ofNetflix’s recent hit,Jailbreak: Love On The Run, due to the immoral relationship at the center of it between a prison worker and prisoners.
Escape At Dannemora
Starring
Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette, Paul Dano, Bonnie Hunt, Eric Lange, David Morse and Jeremy Bobb
Written by
Brett Johnson and Michael Tolken
Directed by
Ben Stiller
Escape At Dannemoratellsthe true storyof Tilly (Patricia Arquette), a lonely seamstress who works at Clinton Correctional Facility in a rural area of New York State.Tilly strikes up a sexual relationship with two prisoners: Richard (Benicio Del Tortoportrays this killer) and David, who are both convicted murderers, and she helps them escape from the maximum security prison.The series charts the events leading up to the escape and the aftermath of the crime. Thetrue crime masterpieceoriginally aired on Showtime in 2018, and it’s become a hit all over again on Netflix. It made its debut on the streamer nearly 10 years after the actual prison break took place, and it has led to renewed interest in the case.
The True Story Of Escape At Dannemora
Richard Matt and David Sweat were two convicted killers who met in prison while serving life sentences.On July 20, 2025, both men escaped from the prison through a tunnel which they had dug themselves using tools they were able to obtain.They left cheeky notes on their beds for the prison guards prior to their escape. It read:
You left me no choice but grow old & die here. I had to do something.
Joyce ‘Tilly’ Mitchell was instrumental in helping both men escape, along with a prison guard called Gene Palmer.The manhunt was on for both men, who were considered to be armed and dangerous. It went on for nearly three weeks, until Matt was found on June 26. The police shot and killed him as he tried to escape. Two days after that,David Sweat was caughtmany miles away from the prison, and was injured by shots fired from a state trooper. However, he survived and was given an additional 7–14-year sentence for the escape.
What Did Joyce ‘Tilly’ Mitchell Say About Her Involvement With The Prisoners?
Joyce ‘Tilly’ Mitchell was given a seven-year sentence for helping Matt and Sweat escape, but she was released after serving only four. She had previously opened up in aninterview with Todayin 2015 about the nature of her relationship with both men:
Mr. Matt had grabbed me a couple of times and kissed me and then there was one point where he had he wanted me to perform [a sex act] on him and I said no. And when I said no, he grabbed my head and pushed me down.
Despite her protestations, prisoners and guards claimed the relationship between her and the two men seemed to be consensual. Mitchell appears to contradict her previous statement in the same interview:
I was going through a time where I felt like my husband didn’t love me anymore. I guess they saw my weakness. Their attention made me feel good.
It appears to be a case of both prisoners preying on a vulnerable woman, in order to facilitate their escape from prison.However, Mitchell had a choice in the matter, and she could’ve reported the inmates instead of helping them escape. To add to the craziness of the story, the prisoners had also hatched a plan to kill Mitchell’s husband Lyle, who was also a prison officer. The plan would’ve led to Joyce running away with the men. However, she saw sense and stood both men up, and professed her love for her husband.
