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 rescue helicopter is shown at the Mount Everest south base camp in Nepal a day after a huge earthquake-caused avalanche killed at least 17 people, in this photo courtesy of 6summitschallenge.com taken on April 26, 2015 and released on April 27, 2015. Rescue teams, helped by clear weather, used helicopters to airlift scores of people stranded at higher altitudes, two at a time. (Photo by Reuters/6summitschallenge.com)

Firefighters pull a pig as they try to rescue it from a well at a pig farm in Huanghua township of Leqing, Zhejiang province, April 25, 2014. Seven local firefighters successfully rescued a 300 kg (661 lbs) pig which fell down a well on Friday morning, local media reported. (Photo by Reuters/China Daily)

These stunning pictures show a normally vicious tiger calmly swimming in a pool of algae, on Jule 9, 2014. The powerful cat takes a refreshing break by taking a dip in the bright green algae. But it looks like this big cat is scared of getting his head wet as he strains to keep it above the water. After splashing around for a bit the tiger gets out and tries to air-dry with specks of the vegetation dripping off his fur. The striking pictures were taken at Copenhagen zoo by snapper Soren Lundgren Neilson. (Photo by Soren Nielsen/Caters News)

A sеxy model poses for photos during the 2016 Guangzhou Sеx Culture Festival in Guangzhou city, south China' s Guangdong province on November 10, 2016. The festival has featured the latest developments and technologies of Adult toys and reproductive health products in the country. (Photo by Asia Wire)

“People and Space”. Winner: Wanderer in Patagonia by Yuri Zvezdny (Russia) A lone stargazer stares up at the stars of our galaxy, the Milky Way, as they stretch across the night sky over the glacier “White Stones” (Piedras Blancas) in the Los Glaciares National Park, Argentina. El Chaltén, Santa Cruz Province, Argentina, 27 September 2016 iOptron Sky-Tracker mount, Sony A7S camera, 18 mm f/2.8 lens, ISO 5000, 30-second exposure Wanderer in Patagonia. (Photo by Yuri Zvezdny/Insight Astronomy Photographer of the Year 2017)

A groom leads his horse in the equine pool after working out on the track, during early morning workouts for the upcoming Derby race in Mumbai January 29, 2015. (Photo by Danish Siddiqui/Reuters)

Nova Scotia Duck Tolling retriever Torrey competes in the 10th annual Petco Unleashed surfing dog contest at Imperial Beach, California August 1, 2015. Proceeds raised at the event go to benefit the San Diego Humane Society. (Photo by Mike Blake/Reuters)