An Indian woman dressed in traditional attire rides a motorcycle as she participates in a procession to mark Gudi Padwa or the Marathi New Year in Mumbai, Maharashtra state, India, Wednesday, March 22, 2023. (Photo by Rajanish Kakade/AP Photo)

Alex Lual (R) in action against Trent Girdham (L) during the undercard bouts ahead of the WBO Asia Pacific Super Welterweight Title Bout between Tim Tszyu and Takeshi Inoue at Qudos Bank Arena, in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, 17 November 2021. (Photo by Dan Himbrechts/EPA/EFE)

Belgium's Jules Hesters (L) falls as he competes in the Men's Elimination race during the first day of the UEC European Track Cycling Championships at the Omnisport indoor arena in Apeldoorn, on January 10, 2024. (Photo by John Thys/AFP Photo)

A Palestinian man reacts as he confronts Israeli forces during a protest against Israeli settlement activity near Hebron in the Israeli-occupied West Bank on June 11, 2022. (Photo by Mussa Qawasma/Reuters)

Local residents crowd a swimming pool during a hot weather in Suining, Sichuan province, 27 July 2008. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

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.

Wearing a satin and lastex top and a skirt made of fishnet Ann Evors, a Paramount player, poses for the cameramen on the beach, circa 1928. (Photo by Central Press)

Beda Haemmerli drives his 1936 Ford Indy race car (front) through a steep turn during the Indianapolis in Oerlikon race demonstration at the Offene Rennbahn cycling track in Zurich's Oerlikon suburb, Switzerland July 24, 2018. (Photo by Arnd Wiegmann/Reuters)