James Van Der Beek is proud to be a "smart-ass".

The former Dawson's Creek star is now playing an exaggerated version of himself in TV show Don't Trust the B***h In Apartment 23. The role suits him well as he is now able to show people he likes to poke fun at himself.

"I've always been a smart-ass and this is very much my sense of humour. I love the ego assassination that comes with it. If you tell a joke at a party, you always get more laughs if it's self-depreciating, as opposed to telling a self-aggrandising one," he laughed.

Plot lines in the show include James launching a denim line and appearing on a televised dance contest. He thinks the genius of the programme is that it is almost believable.

"We've pushed it as far as we can into the realms of the ridiculous while still trying to keep is somehow believable," he giggled to British magazine Grazia.