Most of what you see on 60 Days In is real, but some participants have revealed that the show adds some dramatic flair through its editing.
Regular people really do go undercover in 60 Days In and integrate into these prison facilities. However, the show may make this experience seem a tad more dramatic than it really is through clever editing.
Is 60 Days In fake?
Any reality show that claims to give viewers an earnest and unbiased look into the American prison system and what truly goes on behind bars is bound to draw a fair amount of skepticism. The A&E docuseries, 60 Days In, is no exception.
Fortunately, Rob Holcomb (who was cast on the first season of the show) has provided some much-needed insight into what is real about the show and what is fake.
From Holcomb’s account, it seems like at the very least, the participants really do go undercover as inmates and do try their best to not seem suspicious.
However, there is certainly some fakery that happens in post-production. Holcomb claims that certain scenes and situations were edited to make the inmates and the prison seem much more violent and unpleasant than it truly was.
Did other cast members feel the same way?
DiAundré Newby, a real inmate who Holcomb had befriended during his season on the show, shares many of his sentiments.
Newby even confirmed after the fact that a fight between him and another inmate, which the show had depicted as being caused by his friendship with Holcomb, actually had nothing to do with Holcomb at all.
Maryum Ali (who was also cast in season one) explained that while she certainly did not enjoy her time behind bars, she also never saw a level of violence that scared her while she was there. Despite the fact that the show may have depicted it otherwise.
Do the inmates actually believe the 60 Days In cast’s undercover stories?
The entire premise of 60 Days In is based on the fact that the participants who go undercover at these facilities are just regular people. As a result, it is often terribly obvious that their acting skills are not up to scratch.
Holcomb confirmed that the other inmates figured him out in just a few hours. Newby corroborated this by stating that the other inmates were immediately suspicious about the camera crews and their purpose.
If the show is fake, then what is the point?
Even if 60 Days In, as Sheriff Jonathon Horton from the Etowah County Detention Center states, adds some “television drama” to its stories, the show has still exposed the abuse of several negligent guards.
In fact, it has even led to the creation of a narcotics anonymous group at the facility.
