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.

Masked women shout slogans during a demonstration marking the Latin American Day for Decriminalization of Therapeutic Abortion in Managua, Nicaragua, where abortions are illegal, on September 28, 2012. (Photo by Esteban Felix/Associated Press)

Friends pose for a picture on a night out in Leeds, United Kingdom after receiving their A Level results on Tuesday, August 10, 2021. Students hit the town across the country, downing cocktails and letting their hair down after two years of studying during the pandemic. (Photo by Nb press ltd)

A woman promotes a go-go dance bar in Pattaya, Thailand March 25, 2017. With mascots dressed as smiling fish and a police rock band, Thai authorities launched a “Happy Zone” at the weekend to improve the image of a city notorious for sеx tourism. Stung by foreign headlines portraying the seaside resort of Pattaya as “Sin City” and “The World’s Sеx Capital”, Thailand’s junta has begun a new effort to re-brand it. Businesses in the Happy Zone are asked to make the area feel safer, there are increased security patrols, police launched a mobile phone app for visitors to summon them if an emergency occurs. (Photo by Jorge Silva/Reuters)

A woman uses a tree branch to fight a fire on the road leading to the village of Parada, near Mortagua, northern Portugal, Thursday, August 11 2016. Firefighters in Portugal are battling multiple blazes fed by brush in a hot, dry summer for a sixth straight day. Major fires have also been raging in northwestern Spain and southern France. (Photo by Sergio Azenha/AP Photo)

A group of people wearing Santa Claus hats and swimming suits participate in the 13th charity Great Santa Claus Run in downtown Budapest, Hungary, Sunday, December 11, 2016. (Photo by Balazs Mohai/MTI via AP Photo)

French aircrafts of the Patrouille de France spray colored smoke during a performance on the opening day of the Dubai Airshow in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, Sunday, November 17, 2019. (Photo by Kamran Jebreili/AP Photo)

A woman jumps as a friend (not seen) takes a photo in front of a large drawing of Pope Francis depicting him as a superhero near the Vatican January 29, 2014. The Argentinian Pope is shown taking off into air with his right fist clenched in a classic Superman style. (Photo by Alessandro Bianchi/Reuters)