Ray Breslin is a security expert specializing in testing the reliability of maximum security prisons. He spends his life getting incarcerated under false identities to expose the weaknesses of the facilities, subsequently escaping from them. This professional escapologist prides himself on having designed some of the most impenetrable prisons in the world and is able to break out from any prison due to his vast knowledge. His skills are unmatched, and his career is built upon the notion that he can escape from any confinement.

Breslin faces his ultimate challenge when he accepts a job to test the security of a top-secret prison that houses the world's most dangerous criminals. Once inside, he quickly realizes that this job is not like the others he's had; he has been deceived. With no help or escape route in sight, Breslin encounters Emil Rottmayer, an inmate who agrees to help him. They form an uneasy alliance as they devise a complex and risky plan to escape from the most fortified prison ever constructed. They must work together and rely on their wits against brutal prison guards, an enigmatic warden, sophisticated security technology, and an environment designed to be escape-proof.