A Brussels Airlines aircraft prepares for landing in Cointrin airport during sunrise over the Mont Blanc in Geneva December 1, 2011. (Photo by Denis Balibouse/Reuters)

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.

Members of the Indian Border Security Force (BSF) demonstrate their skills on motor-bikes during the BSF Golden Jubilee Day celebration in New Delhi on December 1, 2015. (Photo by Money Sharma/AFP Photo)

This breathtaking natural light show illuminating waters off the British coast looks like something out of hit film “Close Encounters of the Third Kind”. Photographer Adrian Campfield was out having dinner at a restaurant at Beachy Head, East Sussex, when the rays suddenly appeared. The 59-year-old and his wife Louise rushed outside onto the 535ft high cliffs to watch the spectacle. Mr Campfield, a former graphic designer, from Bexley, Kent, said the light was “changing all the time” for more than 15 minutes. (Photo by Adrian Campfield/Solent/Visual Press Agency)

A participant in the Crazy Races extreme sports game competes in the cross-country obstacle race in Ufa, Russia on September 21, 2015. (Photo by TASS/Barcroft Media)

Lightning streaks across the sky as lava flows from a volcano in Eyjafjallajokul April 17, 2010. (Photo by Lucas Jackson/Reuters)

People enjoying the hot weather on Brighton beach in Sussex, England on August 7, 2020. (Photo by Stephen Lock/i-Images)

Performers during the New Year's Day Parade in London on Monday, January 1, 2024. (Photo by Victoria Jones/PA Images via Getty Images)