John Cusack Sheds 25 Pounds For 'The Raven': 5 Other Actors Who Dropped Weight For Roles [PHOTOS]

John Cusack is the latest star to drop the pounds for the sake of art.

Cusack dropped 25 pounds to play Edgar Allan Poe in The Raven, the recently released film about the poet.

I thought it would be fun [to drop 25 pounds for the role]. It wasn't fun not eating, Cusack told OnTheRedCarpet.com co-host Rachel Smith at the film's Hollywood premiere. It wasn't that fun actually, but I thought that. He was a world famous writer but they didn't have copyrights, so he was dirt poor actually. He was always kind of living hand to mouth and had financial troubles all his life and he was an alcoholic, so I thought that would be the best look - to look kind of emaciated and real wiry. It was a fun time. I put myself into everything I do, so I put myself all-in on this one.

Cusack lost the weight through fasting and a lot of coffee.

Since [Poe] was destitute and an alcoholic, I tried to get as gaunt as I could, the 2012 actor told Reuters. I got down to a weight I was before high school, which is real thin. I felt kind of skeletal. I tried to do it the smart way but it still was a little bit of a bender. I just fasted and drank coffee.

The Raven earned $2.5 million in Friday's box office, according to OnTheRedCarpet.

Click through the slideshow to see other stars who lost significant weight to play a character.