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.

Manhattan's most fashionable felines dressed their best to help Matilda, the famous Algonquin Hotel cat, celebrate her 15th birthday on Aug. 11, 2010. The party was held in the hotel's lobby and centered around a good ol' fashioned cat fashion show. (Photo by Katie Sokoler/Gothamist.com)

A man carries his wife on his back as they make their way with their luggage along a flooded tunnel to catch their train, after heavy rainfall hit Jinhua, Zhejiang province, China, July 21, 2015. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

A trapped car is pushed along a flooded street after typhoon Soudelor hit Fuzhou, Fujian province, China, August 9, 2015. The typhoon battered China's east coast on Sunday, killing eight people and forcing authorities to cancel hundreds of flights and evacuate more than 163,000 people. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

People pose for souvenir photos along peach blossom flowers at a field in Hanoi February 6, 2015. The peach blossom, believed to bring luck to families, is used to decorate homes during the Vietnamese “Tet” (Lunar New Year festival), which will take place from February 14 to February 24. (Photo by Reuters/Kham)

A handout picture provided by Global newsroom of Czech Martin Sonka (C) leading Nigel Lamb (top) of Great Britain and Yoshihide Muroya of Japan (down) along the Mount Fuji prior the third stage of the Red Bull Air Race World Championship in Chiba, Japan on June 1, 2016. (Photo by Predrag Vockovic/EPA/Global Newsroom)

Horses are seen before they are evacuated from a ranch as a wildfire is burning along a hillside in Azusa, Calif., Monday, June 20, 2016. New wildfires erupted Monday near Los Angeles and chased people from their suburban homes as an intense heatwave stretching from the West Coast to New Mexico blistered the region. (Photo by Ringo H.W. Chiu/AP Photo)

Kevin Kvasnicka (L) and Jesse Gonzales openly carry firearms as they watch U.S. Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speak on a big screen television along East 4th street during the Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S., July 21, 2016. (Photo by Adrees Latif/Reuters)