A boy dives into the water during training in Kyiv's Liko Diving School, July 3, 2024. According to Ukraine's first lady, more than 2 million children have fled the country. The departures have impacted various sports. (Photo by Alex Babenko/AP Photo)

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.

A woman poses on the flooded St. Mark's square during an acqua-alta (high-water) alert in Venice, on November 19, 2013. (Photo by Andrea Pattaro/AFP Photo)

P.S. All pictures, as usual, are presented in high resolution. To see Hi-Res images – just TWICE click on any picture. In other words, click small picture – opens the BIG picture. Click BIG picture – opens VERY BIG picture (if available; this principle works anywhere on the site AvaxNews).

Mario Huettenhofer, chief of the German company 3D Fab, presents his own face as 3d print during the international fairs FabCon 3.D and Rapid.Tech in Erfurt, Germany, Thursday, May 15, 2014. 130 exhibitors from all over the world present the entire world of 3D printing. The trade fairs are accompanied by specialist programs featuring 80 scientists, practitioners and trend analysts from ten countries, who will explain the latest findings, trends and applications for additive processes in industry and for 3D printing in the private sector to newcomers, experts and consumers alike. (Photo by Jens Meyer/AP Photo)

Visitors look at a giant puppet of a grandmother sleeping on a bed inside St George's Hall in Liverpool, northern England July 23, 2014. The grandmother is one of two giant models made for a World War I commemorative event. (Photo by Nigel Roddis/Reuters)

A photo taken on August 29, 2014, shows Mount Tavurvur erupting in eastern Papua New Guinea, spewing rocks and ash into the air, forcing the evacuation of local communities and international flights to be re-routed. Mount Tavurvur, which destroyed the town of Rabaul when it erupted simultaneously with nearby Mount Vulcan in 1994, rumbled to life early in the morning on the tip of the remote island of New Britain. (Photo by Oliver Bluett/AFP Photo)

Undercover Israeli police arrest a Palestinian demonstrator during clashes following protests against U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, in the West Bank city of Ramallah, Wednesday, December 13, 2017. (Photo by Nasser Shiyoukhi/AP Photo)

A girl dressed up as a emissary of the Three Wise Men poses for a photo as she waits for their arrival in a helicopter to take part in the traditional Epiphany parade in Ronda, Spain, January 5, 2018. (Photo by Jon Nazca/Reuters)