Russell, who writes regular movie reviews for The Oregonian, a daily newspaper in Portland, created the Sabertooth Vampire in January 2011 while waiting for a preview screening of the The Mechanic to begin.
During the spring and summer of 2012, issues 12, 14 and 15 of Dark Horse Presents included Sabertooth Vampire comic strips, one of which featured an encounter between the titular character and Hellboy, the popular comic book hero.