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Dr. Peter Silberman is a fictional character played by Earl Boen in the Terminator series of films and Bruce Davison in The Sarah Connor Chronicles TV series. Silberman is the only supporting character to have appeared in all of the first three films and the television series. Boen and Arnold Schwarzenegger are the only actors to have appeared in all of the first three films. Boen also makes a cameo in T2 3-D: Battle Across Time.

The Terminator
In The Terminator, Dr. Silberman, a criminal psychologist, is brought in to question Kyle Reese, the soldier sent from the future to protect Sarah Connor from the Terminator machine that hunts her. He downplays Reese's story as delusional and constructed in such a way that it cannot be refuted (such as how there is no evidence of advanced technology because the time machine can only send things back that are covered in living tissue). He leaves the police station just as the Terminator enters.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day
In Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Dr. Silberman returns as one of the staff at Pescadero State Hospital where Sarah Connor is held, now imprisoned as a mentally unsound patient. It is revealed that although he has her best interests at heart, he has made little headway with her, and has constantly been a victim of her attacks when the opportunity presented itself: two weeks before the movie's events, she had stabbed him in the knee with his pen. Sarah briefly uses him as a hostage to try to get out of the asylum when he refuses to have her transferred to minimum security—she breaks his arm, and threatens to inject him with drain cleaner. During Sarah's escape attempt, Dr. Silberman witnesses both the T-800 and T-1000 Terminators, and is stunned when the latter machine uses its shape-shifting powers to step through a barred gate in a humanly-impossible fashion and proceeds to fire shots from a handgun, which are absorbed by the T-800. This turn of events effectively prove the truth of Sarah Connor's "delusions". He is ultimately left alone in the corridor with the unconscious guards as the two Terminators travel down to the parking garage.

An unused intro to the "Nice Bike" scene shows a traumatized Silberman being wheeled away on a gurney, babbling about how everything Sarah said was true.

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
In Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines, a police force has followed the Terminator, John Connor, and Katherine Brewster to a large cemetery, when the Terminator retrieves weaponry from Sarah Connor's grave. Kate is believed to be a hostage, and the sheriff SWAT unit attempt to rescue her. Among the police force is Dr. Silberman, as a post-trauma counselor, who takes her aside and, quite unlike before, expresses some measure of self-doubt, possibly stemming from having seen the two Terminators in the previous movie in Pescadero (although he still seems to partially attribute it to stress from the traumatic situation).

While giving a quick therapy session to Katherine Brewster he spots the Terminator rushing out of the grave and recognizes him back from his own past (Arnold's face as seen in Terminator 2), as he has seen him before in the hospital he goes into an instant deep shock of horror and runs on foot from the place. He is not seen again after this, and his fate following Judgement Day is left unrevealed, but as he does not appear in the fourth film, Terminator Salvation, it is possible that he either died in the nuclear blasts or was one of the survivors, but was just lying low with other survivors.

Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
In the Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles TV-series, Doctor Peter Silberman is seen in episode seven: The Demon Hand and is played by Bruce Davison.

Following Sarah Connor's escape, Doctor Silberman entered into retirement along with the majority of the Pescadero staff. He has become a recluse and has purchased land among the mountains. In his solitude he gardens and works on a book about his experiences as a psychologist. While being interviewed by FBI Agent James Ellison in reference to Sarah Connor, Doctor Silberman drugs and takes him hostage, as he believes him to be a new model Terminator Infiltrator sent to find Sarah Connor. After injuring Ellison in a series of tests to confirm him as a human, Ellison shares with him that he has brought the hand of a Terminator with him as evidence (which Silberman refers to as The Hand of God). To protect Sarah Connor, Silberman sets his home on fire with Ellison still inside and is going to leave with the artifact when Sarah Connor arrives. He apologizes for doubting her, just before she knocks him unconscious (to ensure his safety) and takes the hand.

Following Sarah's departure, Agent Ellison wakes Silberman demanding the hand with Silberman revealing to him that Sarah Connor took it. The FBI Agent arrests the Doctor and he is incarcerated at the same psychiatric hospital he once ran: the very same cell that once held Sarah Connor.

Reception
While only a supporting character, Earl Boen is the only actor aside from Arnold Schwarzenegger to appear in the initial Terminator trilogy. Silberman has been seen as crucial to expanding the lore of the Terminator franchise, as well as being one of the best supporting characters in the franchise. Silberman was also ranked by WhatCulture as the 10th "Greatest Douchebag" in cinema. As well as being ranked by WatchMojo.com as the 7th Best character in the Terminator franchise.

Criticism
The portrayal of Dr. Silberman, the role of psychiatry, and the milieu of the mental institution in Terminator 2 was critiqued by the scientific journal, Psychiatric Bulletin for appealing to popular fears and myths about institutions and not at all close to being reality based.