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.

Participants struggle to reach the prizes during a greased-pole climbing competition held as a part of the independence day celebrations in Jakarta, Indonesia, Sunday, August 17, 2014. Indonesia is celebrating its 69th independence from the Dutch colonial rule. (Photo by Dita Alangkara/AP Photo)

People fall down as they try to form a human pyramid to break the “Dahi handi”, an earthen pot filled with curd, an integral part of celebrations to mark Janmashtami in Mumbai, India, Monday, August 18, 2014. Hindu devotees take part in the celebration in which an earthen pot is suspended high above the ground and groups of young men and children form a human pyramid to reach the pot and break it. The festival celebrates the birth of Hindu god Lord Krishna, one of the most popular gods in Hinduism. (Photo by Rafiq Maqbool/AP Photo)

Buddhist novice poses for a picture while monks gather to receive alms at Wat Phra Dhammakaya temple, in what organizers said was a meeting of over 100,000 monks, in Pathum Thani, outside Bangkok April 22, 2016. (Photo by Jorge Silva/Reuters)

A visitor looks at a sculpture by a Chinese artist Chen Wenling at the "Sculpture by the Sea" exhibition which runs along the Bondi to Tamarama coastal walk in Sydney on October 22, 2015. The world's largest annual free-to-the-public outdoor sculpture exhibition runs from October 22 – November 8 this year and features over 107 sculptures by artists around the world. (Photo by Saeed Khan/AFP Photo)

Dust covered seats are pictured inside the lounge of the Jaisalmer Airport in desert state of Rajasthan, India, August 13, 2015. Two-and-a-half years after the completion of a new $17 million terminal building, the airport in Jaisalmer, a small and remote desert city in India's western Rajasthan state, stands empty. (Photo by Anindito Mukherjee/Reuters)

Women perform a pole dancing routine during the national day celebration of “Urban Pole” dance along a street in Monterrey, Mexico, on June 9, 2013. (Photo by Daniel Becerril/Reuters)

A naked Hindu holy man arrives to bath in the Godavari River during Kumbh Mela, or Pitcher Festival, at Trimbakeshwar in Nasik, India, Saturday, August 29, 2015. Hindus believe taking a dip in the waters of a holy river during the festival, will cleanse them of their sins. According to Hindu mythology, the Kumbh Mela celebrates the victory of gods over demons in a furious battle over a nectar that would give them immortality. (Photo by Rajanish Kakade/AP Photo)