Teachers carry children away from Briarwood Elementary school after the tornado destroyed the school in south Oklahoma City. (Photo by Paul Hellstern/The Oklahoman)

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.

A visitors to the National Galleries of Scotland view the work “A girl” of sculptor Ron Mueck on August 4, 2006 Edinburgh in Scotland. (Photo by Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Singer Whitney Houston performs onstage at the 2009 American Music Awards at Nokia Theatre L.A. Live on November 22, 2009 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images)

A detailed view of the BMW 1600 during the The 40th Antwerp Classic Salon run by SIHA Salons Automobiles and held at Antwerp EXPO Halls on March 3, 2017 in Antwerpen, Belgium. (Photo by Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images)

Police officers detain a FEMEN naked activist during an action at the Poland embassy in Kiev on October 26, 2020 in support of Polish women in their right to abortion. (Photo by Sergei Supinsky/AFP Photo)

A drone photo shows fall folaige wih tones of yellow, red and brown colors of Uludag Mountain, one of the most significant winter tourism destination of Turkey, on November 29, 2020 in Bursa, Turkey. (Photo by Sergen Sezgin/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)