A string is used to ensure that the skirts of female members of the honour guard are in the same height from the ground as they prepare for a welcoming ceremony for Congo Republic President Denis Sassou Nguesso outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, July 5, 2016. (Photo by Jason Lee/Reuters)

A woman sits by a fountain in central Moscow, Russia on June 23, 2021. On June 23, 2021, daytime temperature is expected to reach +36°C (96.8°F). An orange weather warning has been issued due to the heat wave. (Photo by Sergei Fadeichev/TASS)

Fireworks are seen above the Washington Monument and the White House at the conclusion of the final day of the Republican National Convention on August 27, 2020 in Washington, DC. President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence accepted the nomination as the Republican candidates for a second term in the White House. (Photo by Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

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.

“House of the Dragon” star, English actress Olivia Cooke shows off her curves in a new advertising campaign for Rihanna's lingerie firm “Savage Fenty” early October 2022. The British beauty – who took over the role of Alicent Hightower when the medieval epic did a time jump – has become a brand ambassador for the saucy underwear firm. (Photo by Savage Fenty)

A Palestinian clown on stilts walks on a street amid the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19), in Gaza City on November 20, 2020. (Photo by Suhaib Salem/Reuters)

Tourists photograph a red dear stag visiting a car park near Glen Coe on December 1, 2017 in Glen Coe,Scotland. On the first day of the meteorological calendar, the UK was experiencing slightly warmer temperatures today with weather forecasters indicating that the recent cold spell is almost over. Yesterday's snow across eastern parts of England is expected to melt away over the course Friday as temperatures start to rise. (Photo by Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images)

American singer and actress Addison Rae arrives at Variety's Power of Young Hollywood on Thursday, August 8, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Photo)