American actress Drea de Matteo in Halloween costume in the last decade of October 2025, (Photo by Ashlee Krutzfeldt)

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 girl dives under a wave at Bondi Beach as temperatures reached 29 degrees celsius on December 17, 2020 in Sydney, Australia. The Bureau of Meteorology predicted the arrival of thunderstorms and showers later today with a southerly change bringing possible severe storms around the Sydney region. (Photo by Mark Evans/Getty Images)

American television personality Dolores Catania in the first decade of February 2024 gets the “hot gossip” in a staged photo. (Photo by dolorescatania/Instagram)

“Harajuku is a district in Shibuya ward, Tokyo Prefecture”. – Wikipedia. Photo: Harajuku Girl Photo Shoot. (Photo by Tokyo Fashion)

Gemma Collins in the last decade of October 2024 sent temperatures soaring with a sеxy look. The iconic reality star channelled her inner Playboy bunny as she posed in her kitchen, wearing a black lace leotard and corset with fishnet stockings, a bowtie, cuffs and high heels. (Photo by Instagram)

American actress and singer Zendaya shows off her endless legs in miniskirt and heels for a sеxy photoshoot for ELLE's September 2023 issue. (Photo by Steven Klein/ELLE Magazine)