Jorge Garcia, Sarah Jones and Sam Neill in "Alcatraz"

Film and television writers are great at writing fictional people into historical events -- characters like Jack and Rose in 1997's "Titanic" and Cullen Bohannon in AMC's "Hell on Wheels" are inspired by stories that may or may not have really existed, but there is a lot of historical accuracy to general plots and timelines. Though the stories may not be based on hard fact, "Titanic" won 11 Oscars, and "Hell on Wheels" has already been renewed for a second season before the first has even ended.

In a similar fashion, Fox's new series, "Alcatraz," features fictional characters with a historical concept. Premiering on Monday, Jan. 16, the new series stars Sarah Jones, Sam Neill and Jorge Garcia. Another big name behind the series is executive producer J.J. Abrams, who was also behind "Lost," "Fringe" and the 2009 revival of "Star Trek."

The island of Alcatraz has become a tourist attraction for visitors to San Francisco since the prison closed in 1963, but not many know what really went on within the walls of the facility.

Surrounded by more than a mile of cold salt water, the Rock, as it was often called, was deemed impossible to escape from because even if an inmate got out of the gates, he would never survive the swim to land. The facility housed thousands of criminals over the course of almost 30 years, and there are conflicting reports about whether or not anyone successfully escaped. Several movies have been made about escape attempts, and though many of them are based on real people, evidence supporting their stories is limited.

The most famous of these is likely "Escape From Alcatraz" (1979), which profiles four inmates who managed to dig through their cell walls and get out of the facility. None of the men were later found, either dead or alive, and there is little proof that they survived the water that foiled many other escape attempts.

Sam Neill in "Alcatraz"

In Fox's new series, the drama revolves around a police detective who is searching for an inmate who had been presumed dead during his incarceration at Alcatraz more than 30 years ago. Based in present day, the police scramble to figure out who else escaped 30 years ago and where they are now.

Hard-working Det. Rebecca Madsen (Jones) has risen to the top of her game in the San Francisco police department, and she is assigned a high-profile homicide case. Evidence suggests that the murderer is Jack Sylvane (Jeffrey Pierce), who was an inmate at Alcatraz and had been presumed dead more than 30 years ago.

Madsen tries to put together the pieces of Sylvane's escape, but she's not sure who she can trust. Government agent Emerson Hauser (Neill) is assigned to help Madsen in her investigation, but Madsen suspects that Hauser is actually trying to stop her from learning what really happened. Hauser's assistant, Lucy, is just as conniving as her boss, and Madsen grows more and more leery of what they are up to.

When it becomes clear that Sylvane is still alive and getting his revenge on those who locked him away, Madsen teams up with Alcatraz expert Doc Soto to fill in the gaps in the stories she's getting, and they learn there are several other former prisoners who are bound to strike before they are caught.

Madsen's personal life is affected by her new assignment because her grandfather and uncle were both Alcatraz prison guards, and they seem to be on opposite sides of the problem. Her fiance, Jimmy, is also a police officer, but due to the top-secret nature of the case, she cannot fill him in on what's going on, so she starts to feel herself drifting away from the love of her life.

Madsen is played by Jones, who has a limited resume compared to some of her co-stars. Her biggest role to date has put her on the other side of the law from her "Alcatraz" character -- in her recurring role in the hit FX series "Sons of Anarchy," she played Polly Zobelle, who was the narcotics dealer responsible for setting up the rape of the main character's mother. Jones also had a minor but recurring role in the HBO series "Big Love," as well as "Huff" and "The Riches."

The thorn in Madsen's side, Hauser, is played by Neill, who most people will quickly recognize for his role as Dr. Alan Grant in the "Jurassic Park" films. Over the course of his 30-year career, the New Zealand-born actor has focused mostly on the silver screen, but "Alcatraz" is hardly his first small-screen role. He starred in "Crusoe," "Happy Town" and "The Tudors," and he was nominated for both a Golden Globe and an Emmy for his role in the 1998 miniseries "Merlin."

Garcia stars as Soto, who seems to be the only one who can help Madsen find her answers. Garcia has had few roles since his big-ticket series, "Lost," went off the air. His role on the ABC series was little more than comic relief, though he did contribute to several events that put the series in motion. Most of Garcia's roles have been in comedies -- "Becker," "Mr. Sunshine," "Spin City" -- but "Alcatraz" offers him a strong shot at becoming a serious dramatic actor.

There has been little presence of prison series on TV since "Prison Break" fended in 2009, but the success of that series dictates that "Alcatraz" will have a solid following as well. "Prison Break" received two Golden Globe nominations and an Emmy nod, but though it didn't bring home any statues, it had strong viewership every week. It had the same time-slot that "Alcatraz" is inheriting from "Terra Nova."