“Woman with Umbrella in Rain” by Raimund von Stillfried. Artist: Kusakabe Kimbei (Japanese, 1841–1934), 1870s. Commercial photography studios in Meiji-era Japan were renowned for the subtlety and refinement of their coloring techniques. This hand-tinted image of a young woman caught in a heavy rainstorm achieved its naturalistic effect by knitting together multiple strands of artifice: the greenery in the foreground was a studio prop; the flaps of the kimono were suspended by thin wires to create the impression of a strong wind; and long, diagonal marks were made on the negative to suggest streaks of rain. (Photo courtesy of The Metropolitan Museum of Art)

Firefighters extinguish a fire in Kampar, Riau province on Indonesia's Sumatra island on August 13, 2019. Indonesian authorities are deploying thousands of extra personnel to prevent a repeat of the 2015 fires, which were the worst for two decades and choked the region in haze for weeks. (Photo by Wahyudi/AFP Photo)

Russian model Irina Shayk early May 2023 snapped a selfie before she broke “all the rules” at Met Gala. (Photo by irinashayk/Instagram)

American singer-songwriter Olivia Rodrigo arrives at Capital Breakfast Radio Studios on August 15, 2023 in London, England. (Photo by Neil Mockford/GC Images)

Women wipe the sweat from their faces as they wait for bus on a hot and humid summer day in Mumbai, India, Thursday, May 23, 2024. (Photo by Rafiq Maqbool/AP Photo)

Celebrity Hair Stylist, Chris Appleton was walking along Sunset blvd on their way to film Selling Sunset with Chrishell Stause when Chris wasn't paying attention to the Frappacino's that he was carrying and dropped them in the middle of Sunset Blvd in West Hollywood, CA. on December 11, 2024. The looks on their faces was prices. The drinks can be seen in mid air before both hitting the ground and exploding. Clearly embarrassed, all they could do was laugh. (Photo by TheRealSPW/Backgrid USA)

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.

Typhoon Bopha moves toward the Philippines, observed from the ISS, on December 2, 2012. (Photo by AP Photo/NASA via The Atlantic)