A helicopter from the Venezuela's Army takes part in a military parade to celebrate the 207th anniversary of Venezuela's independence in Caracas, Venezuela July 5, 2018. (Photo by Marco Bello/Reuters)

Close Encounter of the Insect Kind: “Check out the awesome face on this praying mantis. I can't get over the mouth, it's like something from a science fiction movie. Of all photographic styles macro is definitely my favorite. I am constantly amazed, in every photo that I take, by the intricate level of detail that exists on even the smallest of creatures. It's a stark reminder that a very complex and infinitely beautiful world exists just beyond our human-sized level of perception. Photo taken in Donnybrook, Queensland, Australia” – Andrew Young. (Photo by Andrew Young/National Geographic Photo Contest via The Atlantic)

Dinosaur expert Jason Hyde, 5, gets to know Bruno the T Rex on August 29, 2024. As the summer holidays draw to a close, parents and children enjoy Dinosaur-themed fun in Darlington town centre, UK, including a T-Rex walk and dino trail. (Photo by James Glossop/ The Times & Sunday Times)

A man walks inside the flooded Cochin international airport after the opening of Idamalayar, Cheruthoni and Mullaperiyar dam shutters following heavy rain, on the outskirts of Kochi, India, August 15, 2018. (Photo by Sivaram V/Reuters)

A competitor looses control of his pancake while racing during the Shrove Tuesday, or Mardi Gras, tradition at the National Cathedral February 21, 2012 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Chloe Goodman attending the Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them European Premiere at Leicester Square, London. (Photo by Ian West/PA Images via Getty Images)

A man works on a small replica of the Iron Man armor next to a homemade replica of the “Hulkbuster” Iron Man armour from the movie “Avengers: Age of Ultron”, at an underground parking lot in Zhengzhou, Henan province, China, May 12, 2015. The 3.4-metre-tall replica is made of over 100 fiber-reinforced plastic components. It took Xing and his friends two months to put them together after watching the trailer of the movie in March, local media reported. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

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.