In this February 4, 2016 picture a masked participant of the traditional carnival parade poses in the streets of the village of Kippel in the Loetschental valley, southwestern part of Switzerland. During this sinister carnival, participants wearing wooden masks and animal furs, crowd the streets of the villages to scare the people. (Photo by Dominic Steinmann/Keystone via 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 dancer plays with fire during Lunar New Year of the Dragon celebrations at Binondo, the Chinatown of Manila, Philippines, on February 10, 2024. (Photo by Eloisa Lopez/Reuters)

American media personality Kim Kardashian and her mom Kris Jenner have debuted totally different looks in a new photoshoot in the last decade of June 2025. Kim, 44, shows off her curves for the pictures, which reveal her new Skims collaboration with Italian fashion brand Roberto Cavalli. (Photo by Instagram)

Every man looks better with a beard. Here's proof.

The model Gigi Hadid receives attention in Soho, New York, USA on June 27, 2017. (Photo by Broadimage/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

Yeshiva School students briefly dance on Grant Street after the menorah lighting outside of the City-County Building for the fifth night of Hanukkah, Thursday, December 26, 2019, in downtown Pittsburgh. (Photo by Alexandra Wimley/Pittsburgh Post-Gazette via AP Photo)

Artists perform during the 137th Nice Carnival parade in Nice, southeastern France, on February 19, 2022. The Carnival takes place until February 27, 2022 on the theme “King of animals”. (Photo by Valery Hache/AFP Photo)