In this photo released by Xhinhua News Agency, a rescuer evacuates residents near the site of a chemical plant blast in Zhangzhou, southeast China's Fujian Province Tuesday, April 7, 2015. Six people have been hospitalized and hundreds of firefighters deployed to battle a blaze sparked by an explosion at Goure PX Plant that produces the toxic chemical paraxylene, officials said Tuesday. (Photo by Wei Peiquan/AP Photo/Xinhua)

Fans gather to watch a FIFA World Cup Russia 2018 football match between Brazil and Costa Rica on a giant screen at Alzirao neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on June 22, 2018. (Photo by Carl De Souza/AFP Photo)

Italian police officers carry away a FEMEN activist during a protest in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican, Friday, November 14, 2014. Members of the Ukrainian feminist group Femen staged a protest against the upcoming visit of Pope Francis at the European Parliament and Council. (Photo by AP 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.

A Chinese man wears a mask to protect against pollution as he waits at a red light while commuting to work in heavy smog on December 8, 2015 in Beijing, China. The Beijing government issued a 'red alert' for the first time since new standards were introduced earlier this year as the city and many parts of northern China were shrouded in heavy pollution. Levels of PM 2.5, considered the most hazardous, crossed 400 units in Beijing, lower than last week, but still nearly 20 times the acceptable standard set by the World Health Organization. The governments of more than 190 countries are meeting in Paris to set targets on reducing carbon emissions in an attempt to forge a new global agreement on climate change. (Photo by Kevin Frayer/Getty Images)

A man stands beside the Philippine flag as colorful umbrellas adorn a village hall in suburban San Juan, east of Manila, Philippines, on June 27, 2013. (Photo by Aaron Favila/Associated Press)

A policeman aims his weapon at protesters during a curfew imposed following violence during protests against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and her government, in Dhaka, Bangladesh, Monday, August 5, 2024. (Photo by Rajib Dhar/AP Photo)

Competitors in the Big Air challenge at the Proryv-2016 festival of extreme sports in Moscow, Russia on March 27, 2016. (Photo by Xinhua/Rex Features/Shutterstock)