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.

An Iraqi man comforts his 4-year-old son at a regroupment center for POWs of the 101st Airborne Division near An Najaf, Iraq, March 31, 2003. The man was seized in An Najaf with his son and the U.S. military did not want to separate them. (Photo by Jean-Marc Bouju/Associated Press)

Young man making the O.K. sign. (Photo by George Marks/Retrofile/Getty Images). Circa 1950s

A Bedouin rifleman hides behind his camel while he carefully takes aim in the Sahara desert. (Photo by Three Lions/Getty Images). Circa 1955

A train attendant helps a passenger to adjust her seat at the business class carriage on a CRH 380A bullet train Thursday, June 16, 2011. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

The images of U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton (L) and Republican Presidential candidate Donald Trump are seen painted on decorative pumpkins created by artist John Kettman in LaSalle, Illinois, U.S., June 8, 2016. (Photo by Jim Young/Reuters)

Participants share a moment after performing at a cultural program during India's Independence Day celebrations in Ajmer, in the desert state of Rajasthan, India, August 15, 2016. (Photo by Himanshu Sharma/Reuters)

A labourer carries a basket of bananas inside a wholesale fruit and vegetable market in Bengaluru, India, August 22, 2016. (Photo by Abhishek N. Chinnappa/Reuters)