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.

Show hosts Anna Faris (L) and Allison Janney dance on stage during the 2015 People's Choice Awards in Los Angeles, California January 7, 2015. (Photo by Mario Anzuoni/Reuters)

Robot couple Xiaolan (L) and Xiaotao carry trays of food at a restaurant in Jinhua, Zhejiang province, China, May 18, 2015. The restaurant, which opened on Monday, has two robots delivering food for customers. The robots were designed as a couple, Xiaolan and Xiaotao, according to local media. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

Hugh Hefner spanks playboy models Izabella Kasprzyk and Bridget Marquardt during their birthday dinner party at Joya restaurant on September 25, 2002 in Beverly Hills, California. Playboy founder and sеxual revolution symbol Hugh Hefner has died at age 91. The magazine released a statement saying Hefner died at his home in Los Angeles of natural causes on Wednesday night, September 27, 2017, surrounded by family. (Photo by David Klein/Getty Images)

Street entertainer and fortune teller “Juana La Cubana” smiles holding a cigar in her mouth as she waits for tourists in Havana, Cuba, Sunday, May 24, 2015. Juana is 72 years old and has worked in the Cathedral square in Old Havana for 28 years. (Photo by Desmond Boylan/AP Photo)

Flying pigeons pass over Nepalese street vendors near the earthquake damaged UNESCO World Heritage Site, Durbar Square in Kathmandu on May 20, 2015. Nearly 8,500 people have now been confirmed dead in the disaster, which destroyed more than half a million homes and left huge numbers of people without shelter with just weeks to go until the monsoon rains. (Photo by Ishara S. Kodikara/AFP Photo)

Islamic female students practice the ancient Thai art of “Krabi Krabong” taught as a sport at the Darunsat Wittaya school on August 16, 2011 in Saraburi, Thailand. (Photo by Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)

Female North Korean soldiers patrol along the banks of Yalu River, near the North Korean town of Sinuiju, opposite the Chinese border city of Dandong, April 11, 2013. South Korea and the United States were on high alert for a North Korean missile launch on Thursday as the hermit kingdom turned its attention to celebrating its ruling Kim dynasty and appeared to tone down rhetoric of impending war. (Photo by Jacky Chen/Reuters)

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