Photographer Howard Schatz had an idea: place actors in a series of roles and dramatic situations to reveal the essence of their characters. Such was the premise behind his book, In Character: Actors Acting, which captures some of Hollywood’s most emotive stars in the act of, well, making faces. Luckily for us, he continued the tradition for Vanity Fair. Here are some of the best.

Rebel fighters from the Ahrar al-Sham Islamic Movement fire a heavy machine gun during what they said was an offensive to take the northwestern city of Idlib March 24, 2015. (Photo by Khalil Ashawi/Reuters)

An archer in a samurai warrior costume aims at a target in the Asakusa Yabusame horseback archery event at Sumida Park in Tokyo, Saturday, April 18, 2015. (Photo by Shizuo Kambayashi/AP Photo)

The sun shines on trees that are displaying their autumn colours surrounding Palladian bridge and the lakeside Pantheon at the National Trust's Stourhead on November 3, 2010 near Warminster, England. (Photo by Matt Cardy/Getty Images)

Sudanese fishermen check their boats and nets before they row through the waters of Nile River near Jebel Aulia, Sudan, May 3, 2019. (Photo by Umit Bektas/Reuters)

A string is used to ensure that the skirts of female members of the honour guard are in the same height from the ground as they prepare for a welcoming ceremony for Congo Republic President Denis Sassou Nguesso outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, July 5, 2016. (Photo by Jason Lee/Reuters)

A robot, developed by start-up firm Asimov Robotics, holds a tray with face masks and sanitizer after the two robots were launched to spread awareness about the coronavirus, in Kochi, India, March 17, 2020. (Photo by Sivaram V/Reuters)

An artist wearing a coronavirus-shaped helmet and a protective suit stands next to a police barricade as he requests people to stay at home during an extended lockdown to slow the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in New Delhi, India, April 30, 2020. (Photo by Adnan Abidi/Reuters)