Actor Bella Thorne (L) and model Amber Rose at the NYLON Young Hollywood Party at AVENUE Los Angeles on May 2, 2017 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Joe Scarnici/Getty Images for NYLON)

American actor Tom Cruise was seen jumping from a water taxi on the set of “Mission: Impossible 7” on October 20, 2020 in Venice, Italy. (Photo by Splash News and Pictures)

Harrison Ford attends the 2025 Screen Actors Guild Awards at Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall on February 23, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Taylor Hill/FilmMagic)

Actor Gal Gadot poses with her family during the unveiling ceremony for her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in Los Angeles on March 18, 2025. (Photo by Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)

Star of Cabaret, English actor Eddie Redmayne attends The Olivier Awards 2022 with MasterCard at the Royal Albert Hall on April 10, 2022 in London, England. (Photo by David Levene/The Guardian)

“You” star, American actress Victoria Pedretti locks lips with American actor Fred Hechinger in New York City on February 26, 2024. (Photo by The Image Direct)

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.

Period-costumed actors participate in the 150th anniversary re-enactment of the surrender of General Robert E. Lee to General Ulysses S. Grant at the Museum of Confederacy in Appomattox, Virginia, April 9, 2015. (Photo by Jay Paul/Reuters)