Chinese paramilitary guards monitoring passengers as they head to their train to travel to their hometowns for the “Spring Festival” or Lunar New Year at Nantong Railway Station in Jiangsu province, near Shanghai Travellers taking part in the world' s largest annual human migration must be home by January 27 to usher in the new year on January 28. (Photo by AFP Photo/Stringer)

Civilians, who fled the violence in Manbij city, arrive to the southeastern rural area of Manbij, in Aleppo Governorate, Syria June 19, 2016. (Photo by Rodi Said/Reuters)

Rebel fighters fire towards positions of regime forces in Ramussa on the southwestern edges of Syria's northern city of Aleppo on August 6, 2016. Syrian rebels said they have broken a three-week government siege of second city Aleppo, turning the tables on Russian-backed regime forces who are now on the defensive. (Photo by Fadi Al-Halabi/AFP Photo)

Divers perform during a Christmas-themed underwater show at the Aqua Planet 63 aquarium in Seoul on December 8, 2022. (Photo by Anthony Wallace/AFP Photo)

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.

Juanita Robinson (L) from Ohio and Trenaya Blackburn pose as Quan White from Michigan takes their picture as they vacation on South Beach on May 16, 2016 in Miami Beach, Florida. The Florida government announced it broke a tourism record in the first quarter of this year, attracting 29.8 million tourists, an increase of 4.8 percent over the same time frame in 2015. (Photo by Joe Raedle/AFP Photo)

A woman looks towards part of an artwork called “Lichen! Libido! (London!) Chastity!” by Anthea Hamilton, one of the four artists shortlisted for the Turner Prize 2016, as it is displayed at the Tate Britain gallery in London, Monday, September 26, 2016. The Turner Prize aims to promote public debate around new developments in contemporary British art. (Photo by Kirsty Wigglesworth/AP Photo)

A Cambodian girl goes through the garbage dump looking for things to recycle in order to survive July 26, 2003 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Rampant corruption in this impoverished country has lead to extreme poverty with many Cambodians living below the poverty line. (Photo by Paula Bronstein/Getty Images)