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 Tibetan artists wearing a traditional costume waits before their performance during the 82nd pre-birthday celebration of Tibetan spiritual leader Dalai Lama at a Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal, 05 July 2017. More than 1,000 monks and other Tibetans gathered at the Monastery compound to celebrate their spiritual leader's birthday. The Nepalese government has banned all kinds of Tibetan activities against the Chinese rule in Tibet so Tibetans have been changing the venue of the Dalai Lama's birthday celebration. The Dalai Lama will turn 82 on 06 July 2017. (Photo by Narendra Shrestha/EPA)

Participants of the 79th edition of the annual Christmas swimming “Coupe de Noel” jump into the Lake Geneva, in Geneva, Switzerland, Sunday, December 17, 2017. More than 2000 men and women swam the 120 meters at the traditional Christmas swimming in Geneva where the water temperature was 6 degrees. (Photo by Martial Trezzini/EPA/EFE/Rex Features/Shutterstock)

A man rides a horse through flames during the annual “Luminarias” celebration on the eve of Saint Anthony's day, Spain's patron saint of animals, in the village of San Bartolome de Pinares, northwest of Madrid, Spain, January 16, 2017. (Photo by Paul Hanna/Reuters)

Models struggle against strong wind before the rehearsal of Christian Dior's Haute Couture Spring-Summer 2017 live show to celebrate Dior's new flagship store on the rooftop of Ginza Six mall in Tokyo, Japan, April 19, 2017. (Photo by Toru Hanai/Reuters)

A woman takes part in a demonstration against police violence during the recent rallies of opposition supporters following the presidential election in Minsk, Belarus on August 12, 2020. (Photo by Vasily Fedosenko/Reuters)

A chimpanzee in the Osnabrück Zoo in Lower Saxony makes contact with a small zoo visitor sitting in front of a pane on September 1, 2020. The two males Lobo and Lome moved from Leipzig Zoo to Osnabrück Zoo to strengthen the social structure of the existing group. (Photo by Friso Gentsch/dpa)

Miranda state beauty pageant contestant Luiseth Materan, wearing a protective face mask issued by the Miss Venezuela beauty pageant, arrives to the Venevision television station to prepare for a meeting with judges, in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, September 18, 2020. Quarantine rules and social distancing has forced the contestants to train at home and online with limited access to the venue itself where strict measures are in place. The pageant is due to take place on Sept. 24. (Photo by Ariana Cubillos/AP Photo)