Few performances have left as strong a mark on modern crime television as Titus Welliver inBosch. The gritty LAPD detective with a rigid sense of justice became a career-defining role for Welliver, anchoring the Amazon Prime Video series from its debut in 2014 through to itsBosch: Legacycontinuation. Welliver’s portrayal of Hieronymus “Harry” Bosch made the character iconic for a new generation, earning him recognition as one of TV’s most compelling lawmen. With his gravelly voice, quiet intensity, and haunted stoicism, Bosch felt like a role the actor was born to play - and it’s hard to imagine anyone else filling those worn-out shoes.
However,Boschwas far from the first timeTitus Welliver delivered a standout TV performance. In fact, eight years before he first embodied the legendary detective in the hit Prime Video series, Welliver stepped into the lawless frontier of HBO’sDeadwood. While fans ofBoschare used to seeing him uphold the law, this earlier role saw him navigating a murkier moral landscape, portraying a very different kind of man. Before he was Harry Bosch, Titus Welliver played a cunning and street-smart character in one of the most critically acclaimed Western dramas of the 2000s - Silas Adams.
Titus Welliver Played Silas Adams In Deadwood
Before Titus Welliver Was Bosch, He Was A Sly Fixer In The Lawless World Of Deadwood
Titus Welliver joinedDeadwoodin its first season as Silas Adams, a character who perfectly embodied the show’s morally gray and politically charged tone. Making his debut inDeadwoodseason 1’s “Mister Wu,” Silas is introduced as a henchman and errand boy of sorts, arriving in town under the employment of Magistrate Claggett (Marshall Bell), to collect bribe money fromAl Swearengen (Ian McShane). However, his allegiances quickly shift when Al realizes just how useful an asset Silas could be.
Silas Adams appears in a total of 21 episodes acrossDeadwoodseasons 1, 2, and 3, becoming a recurring fixture in the show’s increasingly tangled web of alliances and betrayals. Though not a gunslinger or overtly violent,Silas is streetwise, calculating, and often serves as Swearengen’s messenger, go-between, and occasional strongarm. What makes Silas especially memorable is his subtle evolution, from outsider to trusted (albeit expendable) part of Swearengen’s inner circle.
Titus Welliver imbues Silas witha controlled energy that makes him unpredictable, and at times one of the most potentiallydangerous characters inDeadwood. He doesn’t command the room like McShane’s Swearengen, but he knows how to maneuver around dangerous men, using loyalty and smarts as his currency. Despite being lower on the totem pole, Silas always seems to find a way to survive - and inDeadwood, that’s no small feat.Deadwoodallowed Titus Welliver to showcase a very different skill set than what fans ofBoschmay be used to. Instead of a hardened cop guided by justice, Silas Adams was a man who learned to thrive by bending the rules and keeping dangerous company.
Silas Adams Is Very Different From Bosch & The Characters Welliver Typically Plays
Titus Welliver’s Role In Deadwood Was A Rare Departure From The Moral Center He Usually Portrays
Fans who know Titus Welliver inBoschmight be surprised to learn just how different Silas Adams is from the principled detective. Where Harry Bosch follows an unwavering moral compass, Silas Adams survives through adaptability, ambiguity, and often, compromise. He’s less about justice and more about survival, a character who has no qualms about switching allegiances if it means staying alive or staying relevant.
This makes Silasa rare type of character in Welliver’s career.Most of his roles lean into authority, structure, and principle. Aside fromBosch, he’s played characters like federal agentJimmy O’Phelan inSons of Anarchy, Glenn Childs inThe Good Wife, and the Man in Black inLost. Even when he’s playing villains or morally complex characters, they usually carry a certain power or gravitas - something that sets them apart from Silas’s scrappier and more reactive nature.
Sons of Anarchy (2008-2014)
Lex Luthor
Titans (2018-2023)
What’s fascinating is that despite Silas’s lower status, Welliver doesn’t play him as weak. Instead,Silas is resourceful, observant, and good at reading people, traits Bosch also shares, albeit in a very different setting. But where Bosch is driven by inner righteousness, Silas adapts to whoever offers him the best shot at security. He’s a survivor in a world that chews up men like him.
For fans ofBosch, seeing Titus Welliver in a role where he isn’t calling the shots - and instead navigating power dynamics from the middle - is a refreshing contrast. It highlights just how versatile Welliver is, even when working within the slow-burn world of a character-driven series.Deadwoodoffered him the chance to play against type, and he delivered a performance that still holds up as one of the show’s most underrated.
What Happens To Silas At The End Of Deadwood
Silas Adams Survives The Series, But Not Without Sacrifices And Shifting Loyalties
AsDeadwoodmoved into its final season, Silas Adams found himself deeper in the murky politics of the camp. Still working under Al Swearengen, Silas becomes an essential cog in the machine, delivering threats, relaying messages, and helping orchestrate the power plays that define the show’s final arc. He’s present for many of the show’s pivotal moments, particularly as George Hearst (Gerald McRaney) tightens his grip on the town of Deadwood, pushing Swearengen and the others into desperate action.
Silas’s arc doesn’t build toward a dramatic confrontation or tragic end - instead, his survival itself becomes the most telling detail. By the end ofDeadwood’s third season, Silas remains alive and in Swearengen’s orbit,his fate ultimately left somewhat open-ended.Inthe 2019 follow-up filmDeadwood: The Movie, which serves as a belated conclusion to the series, Silas Adams is notably absent. While his fate isn’t directly addressed, his nonappearance leaves fans to speculate whether he left town, died off-screen, or simply faded into the background as power shifted once again.
What’s important is that Silas Adams, though never a lead, consistently represented the type of character who madeDeadwoodtick: smart, dangerous, and loyal only to those who earned it. His character arc may be subtle compared to the fates of others, but it’s layered with quiet tension and survivalist cunning. For fans of Titus Welliver inBosch, the restrained danger Silas brings to every scene is fascinating to watch. It’s a performance that shows what Welliver can do with limited screen time and plenty of nuance - and a great reason to revisitDeadwoodwith fresh eyes.
Deadwood
Cast
Deadwood is a western drama series created for HBO by David Milch. The series takes place in Deadwood, South Dakota, where corruption runs rampant in the gold-mining era as the settlement existed outside the U.S. territory expansion following the Civil War. As the town was the site of a major gold find, it continues to attract people from all walks of life - especially opportunistic criminals.
Bosch
Bosch is a crime drama series created by Eric Ellis Overmyer that ran for seven seasons on Prime Video between 2014 and 2021. The series centers on Harry Bosch, an LAPD homicide detective that is juggling the case of a 13-year-old murder victim while standing trial after murdering a serial killer. After season 7 Bosch was followed by Bosch: Legacy in 2022.
