A guest arrives outside the Anna Sui show at the Strand Rare Book Room in New York on February 10, 2024. (Photo by Jeenah Moon for The Washington Post)

Muslims gather to perform an Eid al-Fitr prayer, marking the end of the fasting month of Ramadan at Washington Square Park on Wednesday, April 10, 2024, in New York. (Photo by Andres Kudacki/AP Photo)

A participant marches during the Tokyo Rainbow Pride parade, celebrating advances in LGBTQ+ rights and calling for marriage equality, in Tokyo, Japan on April 21, 2024. (Photo by Issei Kato/Reuters)

A supporter of the Iranian women life freedom movement takes part in a demonstration, during the Munich Security Conference (MSC) in Munich, Germany on February 18, 2023. (Photo by Kai Pfaffenbach/Reuters)

St Louis Cardinals’ Nolan Arenado, centre, is doused with water by team-mates Masyn Winn and Lars Nootbaar after he took the team to victory against the Milwaukee Brewers of the last pitch of the game at Busch Stadium on August 21, 2024 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Jeff Curry/USA TODAY Sports via Reuters)

Female body builders flex their muscles as they compete in the 2nd Women Sports Model contest in Guwahati on April 2, 2023. (Photo by Biju Boro/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.

Runners compete in the women's 300-meter steeplechase finals during the U.S. Championships athletics meet in Eugene, Ore.,Saturday, August 2, 2025. (Photo by Ashley Landis/AP Photo)