WhenDeadpool &Wolverinebrought back Tyler Mane’sSabretooth, it finally gave fans a rematch that was decades in the making. Everyone who watched 2000’sX-Menknew that a mere fall off the Statue of Liberty (even after a blast from Cyclops) wouldn’t beenough to put Sabretooth down for good, yet he still didn’t make another appearance untilDeadpool & Wolverine. Well, actually that’s not true, as Tyler Mane’s Sabretooth did return in a previous storyline, andDeadpool & Wolverinedid him dirty by ignoring it.
InX2: X-Men United: The Movie Prequel: Wolverineby Brian K. Vaughan and Tom Mandrake, Wolverine is right where fans left him at the end of the firstX-Menfilm. Riding Cyclops’ motorcycle, Wolverine is on his way to Alkali Lake to investigate the secrets of his past - and he isn’t alone.Sabretooth has secretly been tracking Loganthroughout his journey, and when Wolverine stopped for gas, Sabretooth launched his attack.
The battle between these two mutant rivals was one of the coolest in their shared history, a brutal matchup that ended in both of them getting doused in gasoline, and Wolverine burning them alive. While the fight was cool (and more than worthy of a live-action treatment), this storyline really picked up when Wolverine and Sabretooth stopped fighting each other, and started working together to fight Weapon X operatives. After they were captured by Weapon X, Sabretooth even finds redemption by helping Wolverine escape the organization’s clutches - a move that cost him his own life.
Wolverine and Sabretooth’s Live-Action Reunion Would Have Been a Warm One, Not Violent
Sabretooth Sacrificed Himself to Save Wolverine After the Two Became Friends
When Wolverine sees Sabretooth in the Void inDeadpool & Wolverine, their conflict is on-sight, as if they had some unfinished business that needed handling right away. But, that completely ignores Sabretooth’s canonical character development in the FoxX-Menuniverse. After Sabretooth realized that both he and Wolverine were former mind-controlled operatives of Weapon X, Victor immediately befriended him and eventually sacrificed himself to save Logan.
Not only that, but this comic also confirms that Sabretooth was never a villain at all, not even in the first movie. Sabretooth only worked for Magneto because Erik promised to help him uncover the secrets of his past, and Sabretooth only accepted Magneto’s offer because he genuinely thought he was doing the right thing for mutantkind, and that the X-Men were the villains. This version of Sabretooth is nothing like his Marvel Comics counterpart, butDeadpool & Wolverinetotally erases that, reverting the character to his more ‘two-dimensional’ form.
One Detail Saves Deadpool & Wolverine’s Sabretooth Plot Hole: Different Wolverine
Ignoring Sabretooth’s character development in the canon tie-in comic is a bit of a plot hole, especially as it relates to his relationship with Wolverine. However, there is one detail that saves the film: it was a different Wolverine. While played by Hugh Jackman, the Wolverine inDeadpool & Wolverinewas not the same version of the character from the originalX-Menfilms. Therefore, everything that happened between Sabretooth and Wolverine in the tie-in didn’t happen to this Wolverine, meaning Sabretooth would still very much be his enemy - and vice versa.
Deadpool’s Final Form Is the Opposite of His Hated WOLVERINE: ORIGINS Redesign
Deadpool’s form in X-Men Origins: Wolverine is hated by basically the entire Marvel fandom, but his final form remedies that by being the opposite.
However, given the meta nature ofDeadpool & Wolverine, Tyler Mane’s Sabretooth fighting Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine is still a rematch, even if these versions of the two characters were technically fighting each other for the first time. So, while the movie avoided a plot hole due to that detail, it’s still a shame that it ignored Sabretooth’s off-screen development in lieu of a brief cameo and a quick death - indeed,Deadpool &WolverinedidSabretoothdirty.
Wolverine
The human mutant Wolverine (a.k.a. Logan) was born James Howlett, blessed with a superhuman healing factor, senses, and physiology. Subjecting himself to experimentation to augment his skeleton and claws with adamantium, Logan is as deadly as he is reckless, impulsive, and short-tempered. Making him the X-Men’s wildest and deadliest member, and one of Marvel Comics' biggest stars. He’s played in Fox and Marvel’s movie franchises by Hugh Jackman.
