Is Holston dead in Silo season 1? Character fate explored

In Silo Season 1, Juliette Nichols became the sheriff and left Silo 18, surviving the toxic air that had killed her predecessor, Holston Becker. Played by David Oyelowo, Holston was the sheriff at the series' start, alongside his wife Allison (Rashida Jones), an IT Department worker.

Holston and Allison, the early focus of the show, both died after leaving Silo 18. Juliette discovered their bodies outside in the season finale, which also revealed the reason behind Holston's death shortly after cleaning the screen.

Disclaimer: This article contains some spoilers for Silo season 1. Reader's discretion is advised.

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Sheriff Holston Becker dies in Silo season 1

Episode 1 of the first season of Silo ended with Allison, Holston's wife, deciding to go out of Silo 18, something that Holston, as the sheriff at the time, had to facilitate. He, along with the citizens of the Silo, however, saw Allison die moments after cleaning the screen.

Two years later, Holston was still shaken up about his wife's death, and he also met Juliette Nichols, who was investigating the tragic death of her boyfriend, George.

At the beginning of episode 2, the same scene when Allison went outside played out. The citizens are watching someone from the screen at the cafeteria. But, this time, it was Holston preparing to head outside of Silo 18.

Unknown to the citizens inside the Silo, who were looking at Holston and the wasteland beyond, Holston was seeing a beautiful paradise area outdoors through his visor. It prompted him to clean the lens on the camera, thinking that those in the Silo should be able to see what he was seeing.

After cleaning the camera screen, Holston began choking and removed his helmet, hoping it would help, making him the first to do so outside the Silo. Unfortunately, he collapsed and crawled toward Allison's body before dying.

The Silo season 1 finale revealed the outdoors was a desolate wasteland, not the beautiful scenery Holston saw on his visor. The images were virtual reality, designed to compel those who left the Silo to clean the sensors.

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The tape in Holston's suit was designed to fail, causing him to die from toxic air

Throughout Silo season 1, there has been chatter about the IT using faulty tape in the suits given to people sent outside to clean the sensor. The tape was designed to fail, validating the premise that outside the Silo is toxic, causing anyone who cleaned the sensor to die before they discovered anything beyond the hill.

The faulty tape was the same reason why Holston died—it allowed the toxic air to penetrate his suit, causing him to choke and eventually die, as seen in episode 2. The season 1 finale also confirmed the faulty tape rumors when Juliette Nichols didn't die like Holston and the others as expected. Martha had used the "good" tape to bind her suit, allowing her to survive the toxic air, walk beyond the hill, and eventually arrived at the abandoned Silo 17, as seen at the beginning of Silo season 2.

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Catch the full installment of Silo season 1 only on Apple TV+. The first nine episodes of season 2 can also be watched on the streamer, with the season 2 finale releasing on January 17.