John Cusack Promotes Apocalyptic '2012' In Taiwan

The crew of the Hollywood doomsday movie "2012" expressed sympathy Friday for victims of real-life flooding and earthquakes this week in the Asia-Pacific region.

The epic, set for release in November, is based on a Mayan prophecy that a catastrophe will occur in the year 2012.

"Things in the film were happening in real life," co-producer Harald Kloser said of the Asian disasters on a stop in Taiwan during the film's promotional tour. "Our hearts go out to those suffering."

A storm that ripped through the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos this week left more than 400 dead. A quake-triggered tsunami in the South Pacific on Tuesday hit the islands of American Samoa, Samoa and Tonga, killing more than 160. And an earthquake Wednesday in western Indonesia left more than 700 dead, with thousands more missing.

Actor John Cusack said "2012" was not meant to exploit disasters but to highlight how people can rise above their "normal capabilities and normal morals" in difficult situations.

Director Roland Emmerich said he had long been fascinated with myths about flooding.

He said he hopes the film can persuade audiences to spend more time with their families and "see the important things in life and not get carried away by other things."