John Cusack Lost 25 Pounds so he Could Look ‘Gaunt’ for Role

For his latest role as Edgar Allen Poe in ‘The Raven’ John Cusack decided to drop some weight. He managed to lose 25 pounds for the part which he wanted to do because he wanted to look “gaunt” like the famous writer. He dropped the weight by restricting his diet and working out:

“I just worked with a nutritionist and I thought, because of the way he looked and the way his life was, I thought I should sort of look as gaunt as I could, look sort of skeletal. I worked with a nutritionist, and worked out real hard and ate about 1,000 calories a day.”

John also found that the role was difficult because it played with his emotions, which he explains as an actor is something which he takes on when he plays a role:

“He was such an anguished guy. Obviously on one level acting is just pretend, but on another level you sort of have to live with it (the emotions).”