A new regime has arrived at Litchfield and with it comes new business interests, spiritual movements, and parental problems that turn life behind bars upside down and ignite power struggles among Litchfield's residents and guards.

New faces and old resentments make for a potentially volatile blend, especially now that Litchfield is a for-profit business. This season delves into the racial and economic tensions that run rampant in the halls of Litchfield. Overrun with new inmates and overseen by inexperienced guards, the prison undergoes an unprecedented culture war.

When the standoff at the prison turns into a full-blown riot, the inmates take advantage of the confusion by conducting séances, holding prisoner auctions, and preening for the morning news. But with relationships tested and friendships starting to fray, will life at Litchfield ever return to normal?

Brooklynite Piper Chapman's wild past comes back to haunt her and results in her arrest and detention in a federal penitentiary. To pay her debt to society, Piper trades her comfortable New York life for an orange prison jumpsuit and finds unexpected conflict and camaraderie amidst an eccentric group of inmates.