John Cusack appears uncomfortable next to The Raven

He may star in a movie called The Raven but that doesn't mean John Cusack is entirely comfortable in the bird's presence...

The actor looked less than thrilled to have a jet black raven precariously perched on his arm as he walked the red carpet at the Los Angeles premiere of the Edgar Allen Poe horror movie.

At one stage co-star Alice Eve and director James McTeigue looked on with smiles as John awkwardly balanced the raven on his sleeve, suggesting this was probably the brainchild of some movie PR rather than John himself!

Before arriving at the premiere he gave no hint that he'd be joined by a surprise guest, tweeting only, "On my way to raven premiere - hope it scares studio heads into giving me another job!"

In gothic thriller The Raven he plays Edgar Allen Poe in a tale that revolves around a man who begins committing murders inspired by the legendary writer's works.

But, while John didn't look too enamoured with his feathered friend, it seems he went down a treat with other guests at the star-studded premiere.

The well-behaved bird, which is called Suge, posed on his perch alongside stars like Audrina Patridge and appeared unflustered by the camera flashes and noise.

Suge isn't the first creature to steal the limelight from the stars at a red carpet event.

If you need further proof that animals on the red carpet will always upstage their human counterparts whatever they're doing, look no further than the London premiere of War Horse this year.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge were the guests of honor at the royal premiere attended by director Steven Spielberg and stars like Benedict Cumberbatch and Tom Hiddleston, but it was their equine colleague Joey who hogged the limelight and upstaged everyone.

Joey looked completely unfazed - and almost a little bored - by the prestigious company as he walked up the red carpet and posed calmly alongside stars like Spielberg.

Of course, the undoubted animal star of the past year has been Uggie, the irresistibly talented pup from silent movie The Artist.

Dressed in his little bow tie, the beloved canine has been a staple on the most glamorous red carpets of the awards season, ranging from the Oscars to the Golden Globes.

But his appearance at the Berlin premiere of The Artist showed even impeccably trained and seasoned professional movie star dogs can get rowdy when they're overexcited, as he seemed to jump around an area co-star Jean Dujardin would probably rather he left alone!

Sadly, it seems that's the last we'll see of Uggie on the Hollywood scene as his trainer announced earlier this year he was retiring from the movie business.

His trainer Sarah Clifford told The Hollywood Reporter: "We don't force our dogs to do this and it always has to be fun for them. Uggie's still enjoying it but he's getting up there and he's slowing down a little."

We're sure there are plenty more animals more than willing to fill his shoes!