'Escape at Dannemora': The true story behind the Clinton Correctional Facility riots after Richard Matt and David Sweat's escape

A little over 2 months after the escape of Richard Matt and David Sweat, the Clinton Correctional Facility was put on lockdown after two major brawls broke out between prisoners.

The Ben Stiller-directed ongoing dark prison drama 'Escape at Dannemora,' about the infamous 2015 Clinton Correction Facility escape, has managed to attract a lot of attention, given how sensational and cut out for Hollywood the real-life incident was.

At the time, the media had also contributed to spicing up the gritty story of inmates Richard Matt (played by Benicio del Toro) and David Sweat (played by Paul Dano) tunneling out of the prison using tools supplied by prison employee Joyce 'Tilly' Mitchell (Patricia Arquette).

The fact that the two had conned Tilly using sexual gratification only proved to be a favorable bonus for the story to absolutely blow up. But a lesser known fact is that right after the two had managed to escape, something else blew up too within the walls of the facility they were confined in.

GET THE BIGGEST ENTERTAINMENT STORIES
STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX.

MORE STORIES

The final episode runs longer than any other MCU TV episode and closes the ‘WandaVision’ trilogy
2026-11-09T04:55:14.000Z
Each season has six episodes, and the double shoot should finish by early December
2026-11-09T03:29:13.000Z
Only one of the probies will remain standing in 'Chicago Fire' Season 15 Episode 6, titled 'Over the Edge'
2026-11-09T03:02:42.000Z
‘Marshals’ Season 2 Episode 6 and ‘Tracker’ Season 4 Episode 6 will see a change in their schedules this week
2026-11-08T23:00:00.000Z
‘Chicago Med’ has two reunions lined up for Season 12 Episode 6, with returning characters tied to Charles and Frost’s past.
2026-11-07T16:55:28.000Z
Will Estes’ reunion with Donnie Wahlberg prompts talk about Jamie Reagan’s ‘Boston Blue’ future and a possible spinoff.
2026-11-07T15:44:34.000Z
'Campus Drivers' has taken over the world by storm days after its premiere
2026-11-07T11:01:02.000Z
Episode 2 sets Dexter and Charley up as a fake couple while they plan their first kill together
2026-11-07T08:59:35.000Z
The sequel arrives 19 years after the haunted hotel room film grossed $132 million worldwide
2026-11-07T07:35:40.000Z
'Sheriff Country' and 'Fire Country' crossover forces Mickey and Manny to work together
2026-11-07T06:52:03.000Z