A woman takes part in an initial military training for civilians at the sports and patriotic club “Yaropolk” in Krasnogorsk outside Moscow, Russia on December 3, 2022. (Photo by Yulia Morozova/Reuters)

A person rides on a zip-line descending from the second floor of the Eiffel Tower on May 28, 2019 in Paris. The 800 meter crossing takes one minute at a speed of 90km/h. The zip-line will be opened from May 29 to June 2, 2019. (Photo by Francois Guillot/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.

Six month- old baby elephant “Clear Sky” is kept afloat with the help of a harness during a hydrotherapy session at a local veterinary clinic in Chonburi Province on January 5, 2017. After losing part of her left foot in a snare in Thailand, baby elephant 'Clear Sky' is now learning to walk again – in water. (Photo by Roberto Schmidt/AFP Photo)

Partygoers in United Kingdom flocked to bars and clubs across the nation on Friday as they drunk in the 34C scorcher. Revellers were pictured in Leeds on June 17, 2022 necking drinks and going wild as the sun set on the hottest day of the year so far. (Photo by Nb press ltd)

Women stand on the “martyrs' bridge” spanning the Tigris River in Baghdad, Iraq, Friday, February 24, 2023. (Photo by Jerome Delay/AP Photo)

Well-wisher Nadine, holding her dog Connor wearing a knitted crown, waits for the arrival of Britain's Queen Camilla and King Charles III ahead of their visit of the Roe Valley Arts and Cultural Centre, in Limavady, Northern Ireland on March 20, 2025. (Photo by Henry Nicholls/Reuters)

Dancers wearing face shields to prevent the spread of the coronavirus perform during an exercise in Tangerang, Indonesia, Saturday, November 28, 2020, (Photo by Tatan Syuflana/AP Photo)