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.

Police officers detain a Navalny supporter during a protest in St. Petersburg, Russia, Tuesday, February 2, 2021. A Moscow court has ordered Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny to prison for more than 2 1/2 years on charges that he violated the terms of his probation while he was recuperating in Germany from nerve-agent poisoning. Navalny, who is the most prominent critic of President Vladimir Putin, had earlier denounced the proceedings as a vain attempt by the Kremlin to scare millions of Russians into submission. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

A man hugs a child at the Santuario de Nuestra Senora de Guadalupe during a celebration on the Virgin of Guadalupe Day in Guatemala City, December 12, 2015. According to Catholic believers, December 12 marks the anniversary of the apparition of the Virgin of Guadalupe at the Cerro del Tepeyac in Mexico. (Photo by Jorge Dan Lopez/Reuters)

Artist Kong Ning wears a wedding dress made from respirators to highlight concerns about air quality and pollution in Beijing, China on December 1, 2015. (Photo by Luo Xiaoguang/Xinhua Press/Corbis)

Honda MotoGP rider Dani Pedrosa (R) of Spain sprays champagne on an attendant next to Yamaha MotoGP rider Valentino Rossi (C) of Italy after winning the Japanese Grand Prix at the Twin Ring Motegi circuit in Motegi, north of Tokyo, Japan, October 11, 2015. Rossi placed second. (Photo by Issei Kato/Reuters)

The “Strandbeest” sculpture created by Dutch artist Theo Jansen walks at Federation Square on February 1, 2012 in Melbourne, Australia. The 12 metre long, 4 metre high and 2 metre wide structure built of plastic tubes and bottles designed to walk using wind energy will be on display at Federation Square until February 26. (Photo by Scott Barbour/Getty Images)