The Stanford Prison Experiment is a 2015 American docudrama thriller film directed by Kyle Patrick Alvarez, written by Tim Talbott, and starring Billy Crudup, Michael Angarano, Ezra Miller, Tye Sheridan, Keir Gilchrist, Olivia Thirlby, and Nelsan Ellis. The plot concerns the 1971 Stanford prison experiment, conducted at Stanford University under the supervision of psychology professor Philip Zimbardo, in which students played the role of either a prisoner or correctional officer.The project was announced in 2002 and remained in development for twelve years, with filming beginning on August 19, 2014, in Los Angeles. The film was financed and produced by Sandbar Pictures and Abandon Pictures, and premiered at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival on January 26, before beginning a limited theatrical release on July 17, 2015. The film received positive reviews from critics.