Prison Break Actors You Might Not Know Passed Away
"Prison Break" is a complicated and layered show built around a large ensemble of iconic characters — many of whom don't live to see the series end. As it turns out, you don't break your brother out of prison while taking on an insidious cabal without a high level of danger. Being a friend (or even an enemy) of Michael Scofield (Wentworth Miller) and his brother Lincoln Burrows (Dominic Purcell) often brings a high level of risk to the other "Prison Break" characters, but that's part of what makes the show so exciting to watch. Given the scope of the series, it makes sense that "Prison Break" amassed a huge cast of talented actors from around the Chicago area and beyond. Unfortunately, not all of those performers are still with us.
Even actors who only appeared in one episode of "Prison Break" often managed to leave big impressions, and as a result, there's never a dull moment in the show. From the lovable Dr. Gudat to the savvy Nurse Katie, the supporting characters contribute as much to the world of "Prison Break" as the leads, making the series a masterclass in utilizing guest stars to their fullest potential. As a result, even the actors who are no longer with us will always live on within the frames of the show. Here are some "Prison Break" actors who you might not have known passed away.
Ranjit Chowdhry - Dr. Marvin Gudat
Only T-Bag would crash a veterinarian clinic and demand that the doctor reattaches his severed hand. Ranjit Chowdhry's Dr. Gudat may only appear in two episodes of "Prison Break," but he immediately charms fans and even T-Bag into liking him. Of course, the escaped convict isn't one for loose ends, and Dr. Gudat ends up getting put to sleep with his own vet meds for his troubles. The moment does show a rare glimpse of remorse from T-Bag, however, who usually doesn't shy away from pain and torture.
Outside of "Prison Break," Chowdhry is known for a number of TV and movie roles. He had a brief stint on "The Office" as Vikram, Michael Scott's telemarketing coworker, who appears again later in the series when Michael recruits him for his own paper company. The actor also had a long stint on "Cosby" as Singh, along with guest roles on "NYPD Blue" and "Law & Order: Special Victims Unit." He featured in a number of films as well, including "Autumn in New York" and his last project, "On Golden Years." Outside of the United States, Chowdhry gained fame as a prolific Bollywood actor in his native India.
Per Deadline, the Chowdhry died at the age of 64 from a ruptured ulcer in 2020. He reportedly made his way back to India for unrelated medical reasons, and he was unable to travel back to the U.S. after the COVID-19 pandemic restricted international travel.
DuShon Monique Brown - Nurse Katie
"Prison Break" fans may love Sara Tancredi and her desire to see the good in everyone, but sometimes, the prison doctor needs a heavy reality check from Nurse Katie, played by DuShon Monique Brown. Brown played Fox River's Nurse Katie with sternness, gentleness, and humor. Katie also provides a nice balance in the (often tense) relationship between Sara and Michael Scofield, who sees her regularly for his fake diabetes shots. Sara may present herself as a realist, but she's relatively naive at her core, and Katie perfectly balances her out. Sara likely could have benefitted from having Katie around more after the first season, but it's probably better for the nurse's own safety that she stayed away.
In addition to her 13 episodes on "Prison Break," Brown had stints on shows like "Shameless" and "Empire," and she played Cindy in 2015's "A Light Beneath Their Feet." She's arguably best known for her role as Connie in "Chicago Fire" — an administrative assistant turned counselor who appeared in 59 episodes before the actor's death in 2018. Per People, Brown died from sepsis, a common and dangerous form of blood infection, in 2018. She was 49.
John Heard - Governor Tancredi
Plenty of people can relate to Sara Tancredi's fraught relationship with her father, Governor Frank Tancredi, who's played by John Heard in "Prison Break." Instead of seeing her on her birthday, he sends flowers that die in a week. Rather than following through on his promise to take her to see the musical "Annie," he sends Bruce in his stead. There's a reason Sara's a bit jaded, and Frank is at the core of it, though he eventually comes around in the end when he uncovers the truth about The Company. Of course, that revelation also gets him killed.
Heard enjoyed a long, successful career that spans way back to the 1970s. Between major roles like Peter (the dad) in the original "Home Alone" films, Paul in "Big," and another Frank in "The Guardian," Heard wasn't short on work. He also played Dr. Kaufman in "Awakenings," Gilbert in the 1998 film "Snake Eyes," and detective Vin Makazian in "The Sopranos," in addition to TV roles on shows like "CSI: Miami" and "NCIS: Los Angeles." Heard died from cardiac arrest in 2017 at the age of 71 (per The Hollywood Reporter).
Larry Neumann Jr. - Jimmy Bagwell
The "Prison Break" character T-Bag is vile and reprehensible in just about every conceivable way, and the other members of his family are similar in that regard. One of those relations is T-Bag's cousin Jimmy Bagwell — played by Larry Neumann Jr. — who apparently inherited the patent Bagwell trait of extreme selfishness. When John Abruzzi orders a hit on Jimmy (after T-Bag uses him as an insurance policy for their prison escape), Jimmy uses his own son as a human shield, resulting in both of their deaths. Abruzzi is distraught at the loss of the child, and even T-Bag is hurt by the news. Though Neumann Jr. is only briefly on the show, his performance is still memorable enough to recall years later.
In addition to "Prison Break," Neumann Jr. is known for other TV and film roles like Detective Sills in "Walker, Texas Ranger" and Lenny in "Stir of Echoes." He also played a minor character in "Chicago P.D." and appeared in an episode of "The Untouchables," among other roles. However, the actor's true home was the Chicago theater scene, where he was a central and deeply respected figure. He acted in numerous productions over the years and served in various other capacities, including as managing director of the Famous Door Theatre Company (per The Chicago Tribune). Neumann Jr. passed away in February of 2022 at the age of 62.
Tab Baker - Crab Simmons
Tab Baker's Crab Simmons may have only appeared in two episodes of "Prison Break" Season 1, but without him, the events of the series never would have happened. Lincoln Burrows told Michael that the $90,000 he gave him to pay for Michael's college tuition was part of their mother's life insurance payout, but Lincoln actually borrowed the money from Crab Simmons, loan shark extraordinaire. Crab's girlfriend ultimately gets more screen time following his suspicious death, but he's the one who kicks the action off. After all, without Lincoln's debt to him, The Company wouldn't have had the means to frame him in the first place.
Tab Baker's true acting home was in the world of Chicago theater, but he played a number of onscreen roles as well, including in "Gladiator" and "Save the Last Dance," where he played Mr. Campbel. His final filmed role was in "Death of a President." Per Variety, the actor called multiple Chicago theaters his home over the years, but he also took his talents abroad. In addition to his various theatrical roles, Baker spread his knowledge to other Chicago thespians at Act One Studios and Columbia College. Baker died from a heart attack in 2010 at the age of 50 (per Playbill).
Tony Armatrading - Solomon Okela
Michael Scofield definitely has a few trust issues, but given that he waged war against a secret cabal, who can blame him? The guy gets burned constantly. So when former Company member Paul Kellerman shows up with a U.N. employee ready to make all of Michael's problems go away in Season 4, he's more than a little suspicious. Yet Solomon Okela, played by Tony Armatrading, follows through. He clears everyone's name (except for T-Bag), making him one of the most integral characters in the entire series, despite only appearing in one episode.
In addition to his "Prison Break" role, Armatrading appeared in projects like "Eragon," "Notting Hill," and "The Saint." He also had roles on other shows like Mr. Franklin in "Monk" and Wilson N'Diaye in "NCIS." Armatrading even did extensive voice acting for the video game "Star Wars: The Old Republic." The actor's last credited role was in a 2020 episode of "Hawaii Five-0." Armatrading had a long and storied onscreen career, but he was also a prolific theater actor and worked in various behind-the-scenes capacities earlier in his life (via Independent). He died from cancer in 2021 at the age of 59.
Clint Jung - Shan Xing
Right from the very start of "Prison Break," the series establishes that The Company wields immense control over nearly every facet of the government. Given how much power the cabal holds, it makes sense that other shadowy global organizations would do anything to get their hands on The Company's collection of data files and secret identities — known as Scylla — so they can take the power for themselves.
It seems like keeping a written record of members and operations would be an idiotic move for such a powerful and secret group to make, but in the end, villains are often defeated by their egos. That brings us to the character of Shan Xing, played by actor Clint Jung. A powerful Chinese businessman named Feng Huan tasks Shan Xing with acquiring Scylla, and when the man fails to come through, his employer stabs and kills him. "Prison Break" viewers have seen enough Company lackeys bite the dust to know that those kinds of people don't take too kindly to failure, and that's certainly true in the case of Feng Huan as well.
Throughout his career, Jung appeared in series like "7th Heaven," "The Invisible Man," "Monk," "24," "Lethal Weapon," "Jane the Virgin," and "How to Get Away With Murder." He also played Gareth Chang in "Jobs" and Officer Lee in "Cam," among other film appearances, before his final role as Mr. Wu in "Digging to Death." Jung passed away in 2021 (per CHOPSO).
Vince Davis - Dr. Silas
The "Prison Break" character C-Note will do anything to protect his daughter Dede. He's one of the most sympathetic of the Fox River inmates — possibly even more so than Lincoln. C-Note was dishonorably discharged from the military for whistleblowing against blatant torture, which is a move that many would probably view as heroic.
After getting shunned by hospitals when Dede suffers renal failure, C-Note takes her to a dodgy clinic. There the two meet the mildly unnerving Dr. Silas, played by Vince Davis. The good doctor tries to give Dede hemodialysis by placing a catheter in her neck, and while he seems well-intentioned, his gruff demeanor is too much for the girl and her father. C-Note loses his nerve, ultimately opting to make a deal with Alexander Mahone for less dicey medical care in return for attempting to turn Michael Scofield in.
In addition to the role of Dr. Silas, Davis played a priest in "Prison Break" during the same season. He also had roles in shows like "Dallas" and "Walker, Texas Ranger" and movies like "Bad Girls" and "Problem Child." His final appearance was in the 2012 film "Zero One." In 2014, at the age of 59, Davis died from pancreatic cancer in his hometown of Dallas, as reported by the Dallas Morning News.
Ravil Isyanov - Wyatt
If the name Wyatt sounds familiar to "Prison Break" fans, it might be due to the hitman who kills Alexander Mahone's son in Season 4. However, there's another Wyatt in "Prison Break" Season 3, played by TV veteran Ravil Isyanov, who also makes his mark on the series. In the episode "Fire/Water," an inmate riot breaks out in Sona over a water shortage, with Wyatt at the center.
Not many people have the courage to stand up to Sona bigwig Lechero, but throughout "Fire/Water," Wyatt shows no fear in calling him out. The inmate tries to rally his fellow prisoners into a mutiny against Lechero before Michael manages to turn on the prison's water system. Of course, Lechero won't let that kind of rebellion stand, opting to drown Wyatt in a poetic bout of vengeance.
Ravil Isyanov had a long career in television, with numerous iconic roles like Anatoli Kirkin in "NCIS: Los Angeles," Admiral Konstantin Nikolajewitsch Ruskov in "The Last Ship," Gregory in "GLOW," and Ruslan in "The Americans." He also appeared in shows like "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," "Alias," "24," "Bones," and "Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D." Additionally, Isyanov acted in films like "Transformers: Dark of the Moon," "GoldenEye," and the 1996 film adaptation of "Hamlet," in which he played Cornelius. Isyanov died from cancer in 2021, at the age of 59 (per People).