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.

Hannah Rice, 18, jumps from a stump after posing for a photograph next to a large bust of President Franklin D. Roosevelt while touring busts of U.S. presidents in Williamsburg, Va. on March 30, 2019. The statues were once part of an attraction called Presidents Park, which has since closed. (Photo by Matt McClain/The Washington Post)

Geraldine Moodie overcame harsh conditions to become western Canada’s first professional female photographer, capturing beautiful images in the country’s most remote regions. An exhibition, “North of Ordinary: The Arctic Photographs of Geraldine and Douglas Moodie”, is at Glenbow, Calgary, 18 February – 10 September. Here: Inuit woman, Kootucktuck, in her beaded attigi. Fullerton Harbour, Nunavut, February 1905. (Photo by Geraldine Moodie/The Guardian)

Snow falls as a woman walks her dog in the village of Podolye, 70 kilometers (43 miles) east of St. Petersburg, Russia, early Thursday, May 11, 2017. North winds brought snow to the east of the St. Petersburg region. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

“Maho Beach is a beach on the Dutch side of the Caribbean island of Saint Martin, in the country of Sint Maarten. It is famous for the Princess Juliana International Airport adjacent to the beach. Arriving aircraft must touch down as close as possible to the beginning of Runway 10 due to the short runway length of 2,180 metres (7,150 ft), resulting in aircraft on their final approach flying over the beach at minimal altitude”. – Wikipedia

Photo: “AirFrance Boeing 747 landing in St. Maarten”. (Photo by Aurimas)

“A huge wasp measuring 2.5 inches in length, visiting the banana tree in my front yard”. (Photo and comment by John Matzick, USA/2013 Sony World Photography Awards via The Atlantic)

A woman poses for a photo shoot with the blossom flowers decorated at Ritan Park during the Spring season in Beijing, Sunday, March 30, 2025. (Photo by Andy Wong/AP Photo)

A Ukrainian serviceman wearing a new year's hat waves at his comrades while standing beside his tank near Debaltseve, eastern Ukraine, February 8, 2015. (Photo by Gleb Garanich/Reuters)