This image released by Neon shows Matthew McConaughey in a scene from “The Beach Bum”. (Photo by Atsushi Nishijima/Neon via AP Photo)

A girl poses in her costume during a Halloween party at a mall in Quezon city, Metro Manila October 24, 2015. (Photo by Ezra Acayan/Reuters)

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 spot-billed pelican sits on a street light in Colombo on March 16, 2021. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)

Austrian Bodybuilder and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger has some fun at a party on a yacht in Marina Del Rey in September 1979 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images)

“Finger Icons” manipulation series by Ditology. Among the characters is a number of historical and contemporary personalities such as Dalai Lama and Jesus Christ. Very nice! Photo: “Dito Steve Jobs”.

American actress Vanessa Hudgens attends Beyoncé's “Renaissance” concert in Los Angeles on September 4, 2023. (Photo by vanessahudgens/Instagram)

(L-R) Ozzy Osbourne and son, producer Jack Osbourne visit the Tribeca Film Festival 2011 portrait studio on April 25, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival)