Everything to know about Netflix's Unlocked: A Jail Experiment series

Netflix has some of the best reality series on its platform, and now we just learned that a new one is set to be released soon. It's titled Unlocked: A Jail Experiment, and after reading up on it, we're not too sure how we feel about it...

Netflix has its fair share of reality shows set in jail on its platform, like Girls Incarcerated: Young and Locked Up, Jailbirds, Jailbirds New Orleans and 60 Days In. But none of them are as unconventional as Unlocked: A Jail Experiment. This upcoming series consists of eight episodes that are between 30 to 50 minutes each. Set to be released on April 10, 2024, it centers around a six-week social experiment taking place in a detention facility in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Arkansas sheriff Eric Higgins hopes to decrease incarceration and lower re-offending rates at the Arkansas detention facility he oversees. That's why he came up with a radical idea: No locks, no officers, and more freedom. What does this mean? Well, it means that detainees are given independence rather than being kept in jail cells all day. Higgins hopes that his six-week program will ultimately transform the jail into a more community-oriented living environment for the inmates. He also hopes that it will discourage felons from committing more crimes and coming back.

Of course, not every inmate is going to do the right thing after being given greater autonomy. Although inmates are free to come and go in their cells during the experiment, there are still basic rules to follow. Power struggles eventually occur with inmates trying to decide how the facility should be run. There are also inmates who choose to use their freedom to indulge in illegal activities. However, there are some inmates who are serious about making a change and choose to rebuild their lives with their newfound freedom.

But by the end of the experiment, Sheriff Eric Higgins is left to decide whether his radical attempt at transforming incarceration was successful. If so, he looks to implement these methods in his facility indefinitely.

Take a look at the official trailer for a sneak peek of what's to come in the series!

Netflix also released some official production stills from the new reality series. You can check them out below.

Unlocked: A Jail Experiment is scheduled to drop on Netflix on April 10 at 12:00 a.m. PT/3:00 a.m. ET. Will you be watching?