10 Greatest Villains From Otherwise Disappointing Movies
2. Sabretooth - X-Men Origins: Wolverine
The Disappointing Movie: What was meant as a continuation of the fascinating Wolverine origins narrative from X2 instead devolved into a road trip movie overstuffed with useless cameos and bad storytelling.
The Great Villain: Though it was initially perceived as a bizarre piece of casting, it turned out that adding Liev Schreiber as Sabretooth was probably the best move this movie made. The actor immediately proved he could sneer and claw with the best of them and he made a lasting impact in his limited scenes.
Made out in the film as Wolverine’s literal brother, there’s an unending theme of duality between Victor Creed and the hero. They share a similar ferocity but Logan’s compassion is countered by Victor’s lack of a moral compass. And just as Logan is a hero with a twinge of villainy, Sabretooth is a villain with a twinge of goodness in him.
By showing both his viciousness and willingness to do the right thing, anchored by Schreiber’s performance, there was a well-layered antagonist here. We firmly understood who he was and it was a far cry from the mindless roaring beast from the original X-Men.