A worker disinfects a mosque for coronavirus, in Peshawar, Pakistan, Thursday, April 2, 2020. The government imposed a nationwide lockdown to try to contain the outbreak of the virus. (Photo by Muhammad Sajjad/AP Photo)

Tourists play on the “Big” piano inside of the toy store FAO Schwarz on the last day that the store will be open in New York, July 15, 2015. FAO Schwarz will officially close the doors of its flagship Fifth Avenue toy store in New York City on Wednesday night, to the dismay of shoppers charmed by the iconic destination for childhood fun. (Photo by Lucas Jackson/Reuters)

A couple stands next to a poster depicting Dutch politician Geert Wilders and Russian President Vladimir Putin kissing, at a metro station in Amsterdam April 3, 2016. (Photo by Cris Toala Olivares/Reuters)

An explosion at a petrochemical plant is seen in Rizhao, Shandong province, July 16, 2015. According to Xinhua News Agency, a fire broke out after the explosion, which was caused by a liquified hydrocarbon leak at the plant, on Thursday morning. There was no report of casualties yet. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

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 six-year-old acrobat performs on the opening of a tourist festival in Bozhou, Anhui province, China May 3, 2015. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

A woman cools off from the extreme heat from an opened fire hydrant in Brooklyn, New York on July 2, 2018. The highest temperature reached 35 degrees Celsius in New York City on Monday as a result of a prolonged heat wave. (Photo by Shannon Stapleton/Reuters)

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)