Cusack grateful to be working

John Cusack said he feels very lucky to be working in such a “nasty business”.

The ‘High Fidelity’ actor – who stars in disaster epic ‘2012’ where he plays one of the world’s last survivors after a number of natural disasters hit earth– said he’s very grateful to be working as an actor.

He said: “I’m just aware that I’m a lucky person. You scratch for roles and sometimes you want to get roles and they go to other people. It’s very nice to get a phone call saying, ‘we want you to do this movie, you’re the person we want for it.’ It’s very flattering.

“Sometimes you’ve got to scratch, or you’re the fourth or fifth choice. You know, Hollywood can be a nasty business.”

The 43-year-old American also revealed that it took a lot of work for him to prepare for the role.

He said: “I’ve done action movies before, because I’ve done all sorts of different movies, but this was a marathon.

“You’ve got to go to the gym after work each night. You’ve got to stretch. Otherwise your body wouldn't hold up. You’ve got to eat well.”

Thandie Newton, his co-star in the film, also recently spoke about how she felt overwhelmed by the enormity of the blockbuster.