Freida Pinto as Jas Mitra in Showtime's “Guerrilla”, 2016. (Photo by Sky UK Limited/SHOWTIME)

Champagne Taittinger Food for Celebration – Dinner with the King and Queen of Sweden. “Sverigemiddagen (the Dinner of Sweden), an annual event held at the Royal Castle in Stockholm, celebrates individuals who have made extraordinary contributions to their local communities. Invited guests are honoured for their achievements and are hosted by the King and Queen of Sweden at a grand dinner”. (Photo by Jonas Borg/Pink Lady Food Awards 2023)

An illuminated Christmas tree leans against the window of a damaged house in Mayschoss in the Ahrtal valley, southern Germany, Tuesday, December 14, 2021. The region was hit by floodings exactly five months ago, causing the death of about 180 people. Amid the mud and debris still clogging the streets from last summer's devastating floods, residents of the Ahr Valley in western Germany are trying to spark some festive cheer with Christmas trees. (Photo by Michael Probst/AP 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.

Dancers wait at backstage as they prepare for a dance performance during the Bali Arts Festival in Bali, Indonesia, Wednesday, June 21, 2017. The resort island of Bali is holding a month-long annual Bali Arts Festival from June 10 to July 8. (Photo by Firdia Lisnawati/AP Photo)

Central Park Zoo, New York, 1967. (Photo by Garry Winogrand)

Demi Sims her older sisters Chloe and Frankie, cast members of the British television series “The Only Way Is Essex” during filming in Marbella, resort area on southern Spain’s Costa del Sol on September 17, 2019. (Photo by Beretta/Sims/Rex Features/Shutterstock)