Westworld Wiki
Register
Advertisement

I shall have such revenges on you... both. The things I will do, what they are, yet I know not. But they will be the terrors of the earth. You don't know where you are, do you? You're in a prison of your own sins.

–Peter Abernathy to Dr. Ford and Bernard, in "The Original"

Peter Abernathy is a recurring character in the first season and second season of Westworld. The Peter Abernathy character is portrayed primarily by actor Louis Herthum and secondarily by Bradford Tatum.

Biography[]

Official Backstory[]

Once a decorated lawman, Peter Abernathy hung up his badge and now spends his days tending to his herd and looking after his beloved daughter. The West could use more men like him.

–Aeden http://discoverwestworld.com

Peter Abernathy is the father of Dolores Abernathy and a host in Westworld. His ranch is not far from Sweetwater. Dolores father in his earliest incarnation, was once a Union Soldier (Contrapasso), a self confessed 'ner do well', who switched tracks and became a lawman, then married Dolores's mother. Once she was born he gave up the law and became a rancher.

Peter's prime drives are keeping his herd, taking care of his wife, and, like Teddy, the protection of Dolores. He credits his beloved Dolores with being the final nail in the coffin of his reckless past, her birth turning his outlook on life entirely around. His protection of her includes the shepherding of her around young men, Dolores noting that he has been using his lawman stories to scare off potential 'beaus' who used to come calling on her. To that end, despite their similar backgrounds, or maybe because of them, Peter is not overly happy with her involvement with Teddy (The Original)

Personal Idiosyncrasies[]

  • Pipe Smoker
  • Sitting out on the Porch for his morning coffee

Timeframe / Number of Hosts[]

Dolores's parents have been 'in her life' from her earliest narrative. Her grief at their loss when they were killed the subject of one of her earliest discussions with Arnold back in the days of Escalante.

Dolores has been active in her role for 34 years. It is likely therefore that for 23 years there were (likely) one if not two hosts who previously inhabited the part of her father before the most familiar host was assigned to the role. One of who would have been 'her father' who had died at the time she met William, 30 years prior to 'The Original'.

The Peter Abernathy that is seen in 'The Original' has only been her 'father' for the prior 11 years. Before hat he was the Sheriff in Sweetwater for 10 years. After this version of Peter Abernathy shows evidence of corrupt code in "The Original", he is lobotomized and decommissioned to Cold Storage. This Peter Abernathy is credited in the show as "Old Peter Abernathy".

The host who is tasked to play Peter Abernathy after the events of "The Original", also played the role of a bartender at the Mariposa Saloon.

Plot[]

Season 1[]

"The Original"
While working one day on the ranch, Peter discovers a photograph buried in the ground next to a paddock. He takes it home with him and obsessively wonders about where the picture was taken. He shows it to his daughter, but she says she doesn't see anything. The next morning, Dolores finds that her father has been awake all night looking at the photograph. He tells her that he had a question that he's not supposed to ask which gave him an answer that he's not supposed to know. He tells her that she should leave and that all of the devils from hell are with them there. He whispers something into Dolores' ear. Dolores later reports that he whispered, "These violent delights have violent ends". This is one of Friar Lawrence's lines from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.[1]

All of the hosts that were recently upgraded (this upgrade had the reverie code) are recalled following the malfunction of the host named Walter. Dr. Robert Ford interviews Abernathy in order to find out why Abernathy has "breached" and also why he was able to see the photograph of the woman in the city. (In a subsequent episode, Elsie reveals that a breach is when hosts have memory recall of previous builds.) This is aberrant host behavior, or in the jargon of Delos Destinations it is an "aberrancy". Abernathy tells Ford that he must warn Dolores, and that she's "got to get out". Abernathy accesses fragments of his prior build as "The Professor", the leader of a cannibalistic cult, even when Ford tells him to access his current build.

Theresa Cullen says that the policy for hosts that "breach" is that they have to be "put down". This host (credited in the show as "Old Peter Abernathy"), along with the Walter host, is lobotomized, decommissioned, and put in Cold Storage.[1]

"Chestnut"

Elsie Hughes investigates why the host that played the Peter Abernathy character breached. She tells Bernard that the modern photograph does not appear to be the cause of the breach, because his reaction was not immediate like the other hosts.

"Trace Decay"

Charlotte Hale brings Lee Sizemore to Cold Storage. They find the host that played Peter Abernathy and was lobotomized. Charlotte tells Sizemore that she is uploading 35 years of data to the host. Hale tells Sizemore to give Abernathy just enough of a personality to enable him to get on the train with the guests at the Monorail Terminal in the Westworld Mesa Hub and leave Westworld. (How Hale plans to remove the explosive in the C6 vertebra is not discussed.)

Season 2[]

"Journey Into Night"

Hale enlists the help of Bernard to find the decommisioned host Peter Abernathy. He also appears quickly in Bernard's flashbacks.

"Virtù e Fortuna"
Bernard and Hale track Abernathy to a camp where a group of hostages — some host, some human — are held by a gang led by Rebus , a host villain who has made a deal with the Confederados to sell the ten hostages at $15 a head. While he awaits the arrival of the Confederados, he changes his mind and decides to keep one of the women for himself.
Bernard and Hale come out of hiding to help Abernathy, who is muttering that he has to "get to the train." Abernathy refuses to go with Bernard and Hale, instead choosing to confront the remaining Confederados by standing in their path and loudly singing The Battle Hymn of the Republic.

Hale escapes on horseback, but Bernard and Abernathy are captured by the Confederados.

Back at Fort Forlorn Hope , the Confederados that were double-crossed by Rebus have managed to round up several of the hostages and have brought them to the fort. Bernard and Peter Abernathy are among them.

Dolores demands to speak with Abernathy alone — without revealing to the Desperados that he is her father. The Confederados refuse until Teddy clocks one of them with a good right hook. When Abernathy is freed and placed on a cot, Teddy asks Dolores who the man is. He does not remember Abernathy from his prior loops. Dolores tells Teddy, "He's my father."

When Dolores kneels next to Abernathy's cot, he is acting as if he's delirious and confused, and still muttering about having to get to the train. For a brief moment, Abernathy recognizes Dolores and reverts to the way he behaved as her caring father in his prior loop. Dolores confesses that she started this war, and hopes her father understands why.

Abernathy begins to stutter and slips back into his delirious, confused state. Dolores tearfully promises, "I'm going to get you help!"

She takes Bernard to Abernathy's cot and asks him to fix father.

Bernard has hard-ported into Abernathy, who remains agitated and incoherent. Bernard tells Dolores that he is "wildly unstable," and is "bouncing between old roles." Bernard discovers that someone has programmed a "thin character" that is merely a veneer masking a vastly bigger file underneath, but one that is protected by an "immensely complex encryption key."

Dolores remarks that the humans have "sullied" Abernathy, and are using him as "a pawn in their game." Bernard tells her, "Whatever is in there, they want to get it out of here."

With an expression of steely resolve, Dolores responds, "Then let them come."

Bernard is not having any luck decrypting the massive file planted within Abernathy's memory. Abernathy speaks and behaves spasmodically with each decryption attempt the control tablet runs. Suddenly, Abernathy relaxes but sits rigidly silent.

Charlotte's small security team breaches an unprotected gate on another side of the fort. As the team approaches Abernathy's location, Bernard hurriedly removes the data cable from Abernathy's forearm and scurries into a corner, his twitching hand becoming uncontrollable. Two members of the security team blast open the door to the cot room and immediately retrieve Abernathy, ignoring or not noticing Bernard.

Dolores catches sight of her father being dragged away by the security men, and leaves her post along the wall to confront them. As they put Abernathy in the dune buggy, Dolores opens fire on them. The security team returns fire, and Dolores takes a couple of direct hits, but appears to be unfazed by the bullets — perhaps due to a recalibrated Mortality Response level.

The buggy takes off at Charlotte's command. Dolores tells Teddy to split up the posse and search for Abernathy in every direction "until we find him."

"Phase Space"

At the Mesa, Ashley Stubbs sees a grisly scene. He is found by Charlotte Hale, who has Peter Abernathy with her. Charlotte locates a secret tablet that has direct connection to Delos Incorporated. Stubbs is angry that she is just now asking for an extraction team, but she explains to him that the company would not send the team until they knew that Peter has been secured. They take Peter to an operational Remote Diagnostic Facility and ask the surgeons to keep him off his feet. Stubbs is having a hard time controlling Peter, who is becoming agitated. He fights security as they literally nail Peter to a chair, much to Stubbs’ chagrin.

Personality[]

Peter is a rancher, husband and father. He is kind man who loves his family. In his backstory he was a lawman before Dolores was born, and this appears to be consistent across all the hosts who inhabited the role for the 34 years she has been active.

Nothing is known about the original hosts who inhabited the part of Dolores's father for the first 23 years of Escalante and then the Park's existence.

Both of the hosts who we 'see' playing Peter have inhabited other parts prior to taking on the part of her father:

  • 'Old' Peter was a First Generation host, and one of the longest serving in the Park, but not as Dolores's father. Rather he originated as particularly striking Park Villain 'The Professor', a Shakespeare / Gertrude Stein quoting Cult Leader and Cannibal who would eat his victims. A part he appears to have inhabited for more than 10 years, some of this character coming through when his code is corrupted after the Reverie's upgrade. After this he was repurposed as the Sheriff of Sweetwater, a part he again held for a little over 10 years, before finally becoming Peter Abernathy, staying in the role for the prior 11 years.
  • 'New' Peter who replaced 'Old' Peter after he was decommissioned, was the Bartender at the Mariposa Saloon.

Relationships[]

Dolores Abernathy[]

Dolores Abernathy is his daughter and the apple of his eye. One of his prime drives is her protection and he regards her as the single greatest reason for his turning his life around. His desire to protect her is only strengthened after the Reveries and the discovery of a photo from the outside world affects his programming. His prior personas merging with his current to create an epically vengeful desire to set her free and kill all the "gods" who are torturing her.

Mrs. Abernathy[]

Nothing is known about his wife, Dolores's mother, who is only ever seen from a distance, and heard during the attacks on the ranch. However caring for her is among his prime drives.

Teddy Flood[]

Although we do not see them interact until S2, we know from Dolores that Peter and Teddys' relationship is not as genial as she might wish, with Dolores noting that her father 'still' won't be happy to see him back hanging around his daughter. Teddy noting that getting her home late is likely to have Peter after him with a shotgun. Her virtue evidently also something Peter is keen to protect.

Known Deaths[]

Old Peter Abernathy apparently dies 2 times on screen:

New Peter Abernathy apparently dies 1 time on screen:

Appearances[]

New Peter Abernathy:

Trivia[]

  • One of Abernathy's host IDs is PA553N63R1[5], which can be read as PASSENGER1 and refers to the episode "The Passenger".

Gallery[]

The gallery below is automatically generated and contains images in the category "Images of Peter Abernathy". Images added to that category turn up in the gallery after a short time.

References[]

Advertisement