A fireman looks on as a Canadair aircraft drops water to extinguish a wildfire in Sicily's Trapani, Italy on August 27, 2023. (Photo by Antonio Cascio/Reuters)

Britain’s Kate, Princess of Wales, center, smiles as she wears an inflatable life vest during a visit at the Royal Naval Air Station (RNAS) Yeovilton, near Yeovil in Somerset, England, Monday, September 18, 2023. The Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton is one of the Royal Navy's two principal air stations and one of the busiest military airfields in the UK. (Photo by Ben Birchall/PA Wire via AP Photo)

A model wears a creation for the Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2024 womenswear fashion collection presented Monday, October 2, 2023 in Paris. (Photo by Vianney Le Caer/AP Photo)

A Chinese girl in traditional dress eats her lunch in a Five Guys restaurant in between shooting videos for her Chinese social media account on October 18, 2023 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Dancers in mirrorball costumes dance with festival-goers during day two of Glastonbury Festival 2024 at Worthy Farm, Pilton on June 27, 2024 in Glastonbury, England. Founded by Michael Eavis in 1970, Glastonbury Festival features around 3,000 performances across over 80 stages. Renowned for its vibrant atmosphere and iconic Pyramid Stage, the festival offers a diverse lineup of music and arts, embodying a spirit of community, creativity, and environmental consciousness. (Photo by Leon Neal/Getty Images)

Hungary's athlete Anna Toth lies on track after a fall in the women's 100m hurdles semifinal during the European Athletics Championships at the Olympic stadium in Rome on June 8, 2024. (Photo by Anne-Christine Poujoulat/AFP Photo)

Spain's #02 Tania Moreno Matveeva digs the ball in the women's round of 16 beach volleyball match between Spain and Netherlands during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Eiffel Tower Stadium in Paris on August 5, 2024. (Photo by Aris Messinis/AFP 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.