This weekend, ScreenCrave sat down with Liev Schreiber to talk about his upcoming role in Defiance, (full interview to come) and was lucky enough to grab some info about his role as Sabertooth in the upcoming Hugh Jackman movie, Wolverine.
Liev knew that even though some fans were reluctant about him playing Sabertooth, he was confident that he could stand toe to toe with Jackman. Below he talks about his research, reading the comics, taking on the role, and even some new footage that he’s seen. Check it out…
Do you find it fun being an action guy?
Yeah! What’s the fun? Haven’t you ever played cops and robbers or cowboys and Indians? I don’t think men really grow pass 22 intellectually. Physically we just get older and we’re less capable of doing the things you want to do, but you never stop wanting to do them.
How much fun was Wolverine for you?
Insanely fun. I felt very self conscious originally because I knew the fans didn’t like the idea of me playing Sabertooth?
Really?
I think I’m perceived as a kind of urbane, New Yorker. Maybe I’ve done too many movies with Jewish characters or something. They’re like “It’s like Woody Allen playing Sabertooh.” And I’m like no actually it’s not. I’m 6′3” I’m bigger than Hugh Jackman, I can do this.
Could you take him?
I could take him yeah. No I really can! In fact I do! But the reality is, since I’ve known him and I’ve known him a long time, Hugh has become this colossal man. He’s huge! Just muscles everywhere and I have to play this guy who whoops his ass. So, as soon as I finished Defiance, I began this kind of four month training period of weight lifting, this kind of genocide of chickens phase of my life where I just got bigger and bigger and bigger and it was awful, but amazing and fun. Then when I finally got there and got to choreograph the fights with Hugh and get on the wire and do the work, it’s not just that it was fun, I saw some of the footage, and it’s pretty cool.
You’re listed as two different characters in the film Victor Creed and Sabertooth what is that about?
[Evil Laugh] Victor Creed is Sabertooth. I just wanted everyone to know I got a name.
Did you read the comics?
Oh I read the comics before I got offered the part. I knew the character really well. Initially I had been asked to play Striker, and I asked, “do you think there is any way I could play this Victor Creed guy?”
The research that I did, Victor’s particular mutant issue, has nothing to do with his name “Sabertooth” but that’s where I decided to start. What is Sabertooth. How do they move? What are their behavioral characteristics? And I knew this stuff from the comic. I knew that he was a completely savage street fighter and that, that was his MO. But, what I hadn’t seen in some of the earlier films that I was interested in trying to pursue. Is what drives the guy, and instead of saying this guy is just a violent brute, what is the cocktail that makes the brute tick. Hopefully people will like it.
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