Nigel Cox and Kevin Jay paint with light using fibre optic whips on the beach at Clacton-on-Sea in Essex, United Kingdom on July 25, 2023 with a superhero fighting theme. (Photo by Kevin Jay/Picture Exclusive)

Lightning streaks across the skies over the coastal port city of Batroun, some 43km north of the Lebanese capital Beirut on December 6, 2023. (Photo by Ibrahim Chalhoub/AFP Photo)

The second annual Salon du Chocolat exhibition and fashion show at LeGourmet in Galeries Lafayette, Dubai Mall on May 18, 2023. Dress “Madonna” created by Chef Christiane S. Trilck designed by Julian Knips. (Photo by Antonie Robertson/The National)

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 machine works on a Rio 2016 Olympic medal at the Casa da Moeda do Brasil (Brazilian Mint) in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, June 28, 2016. The Casa da Moeda do Brasil is the Brazilian mint, owned by the Brazilian government and administratively subordinated to the Ministry of Finances. It was established in 1694. (Photo by Sergio Moraes/Reuters)

A fan dressed as “Loki” poses before the European premiere of “Avengers: Age of Ultron” at Westfield shopping centre in Shepherds Bush, London April 21, 2015. (Photo by Stefan Wermuth/Reuters)

A vendor (C) cuts slaughtered dogs for sale at his roadside stall in Duong Noi village, outside Hanoi December 16, 2011. While animal rights activists have condemned eating dog meat as cruel treatment of the animals, it is still an accepted popular delicacy for some Vietnamese, as well in some other Asian countries. Duong Noi is well-known as a dog-meat village, where hundreds of dogs are killed each day for sale as popular traditional food. Dog-eating as a custom is rooted in Vietnam and was developed as a result of poverty. One kilogram of dog meat costs about 130,000 dongs ($6.2). (Photo by Reuters/Kham)

Iranian visitors practice shooting with shooting simulators made in Iran at a police shooting simulation booth at the 19th International Police Security and Safety Equipment Exhibition (IPAS 2022) at the grand Mosalla mosque in Tehran, Iran, on October 20, 2022. (Photo by Rouzbeh Fouladi/Avalon)