Musicians of the alphorn band "Holdersberger Alp- Traum- Blaeser" perform their skills on a raft floating on the Elbsee lake near Aitrang, southern Germany, on June 11, 2017. (Photo by Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/AFP Photo/DPA)

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.

Singers Britney Spears and Madonna share a kiss onstage during the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards at Radio City Music Hall on August 28, 2003 in New York City. (Photo by Dave Hogan/Getty Images)

Polish supermodel Anja Rubik attends the Saint Laurent show as part of the Paris Fashion Week Womenswear Fall/Winter 2020/2021 on February 25, 2020 in Paris, France. (Photo by Swan Gallet/WWD/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Marina performs on stage at O2 Apollo Manchester on May 10, 2019 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Andrew Benge/Redferns)

Wearing a mariachi hat, candidate Clara Brugada, who is running as a delegation leader under the ruling party Morena, smiles as she greets supporters on the last day of campaigning ahead of the June 6 mid-term elections, in the Iztapalapa borough of Mexico City, Wednesday, June 2, 2021. (Photo by Marco Ugarte/AP Photo)

Actors reenact the famous picture of a sailor kissing a nurse on the 70th anniversary of Victory over Japan Day, near a replica sculpture in New York's Times Square August 14, 2015. The replica is being displayed to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the iconic photograph of the most famous kiss in American history that was captured between an American sailor and nurse on August 14, 1945, marking the end of World War Two. The actors are hired by a tour bus company to pose for groups to photograph. (Photo by Brendan McDermid/Reuters)

Members of the Hitler Youth who are trained to report airstrikes repaining their bicycles. Published by: “Die Sirene”. 1942. (Photo by Herbert Hoffmann/Ullstein Bild via Getty Images)