James Van Der Beek's Reddit AMA was So Funny

Listen: we all loved James Van Der Beek during his days as Dawson's Creek's titular character, Dawson Leery, the world's most emotionally unkempt teenage boy. He broke and rebuilt our hearts many times over during our teenage years, and for that he'll forever hold a soft spot in our hearts. But even in his later years, the Beek has proven himself an asset for our current maturation, too, thanks to his crazy '90s stories and his too-real new comedy Friends with Better Lives, but nothing has been more helpful than Van Der Beek's recent Reddit AmA. Now one of the coolest places to air your celebrity dirty laundry (and showcase a bit of normal humanness), The Beek dished on Dawson, Don't Trust the B--, that ridiculous Kesha video he did a few years back, and much more.

Come revel in glory that is one of your teen idols all growed-up. It's fun! And full of fanatical superfan horror stories.

On Dawson's Creek's Biggest Shark-Jumping Moment:

• When I had to convince Katie's character to wear a wire to snitch on her drug dealing dad because a molotov cocktail had been thrown through a window, I remember thinking, "What show am I on again?" But then we crossed back over and got back to more relationship stuff. Six head writers in six years will take you all over the map.

On That Kesha Video:

• The director, Chris Marrs, got the job by pitching his vision to her, and that vision included me with a laser gun shooting unicorns who bled rainbows. I was in a period in my career where I stopped worrying about what people might think and just started saying yes to anything I hadn't done before that sounded like it might be fun.

On Being The Beek:

• In college, the "Beek" seemed to be optional. My nickname there was "Van Der - and then any insult, name, adjective etc anyone felt like throwing at the end of it. So… pronounce it however you like. I pronounce it the American way.

On Friends with Better Lives' Ultimate Goals:

• Our goal is to establish our superiority by demoralizing you, thereby making you dependent on us for any ounce of joy you hope to experience in life ;)

On Those Absolutely Nutter Dawson's Creek Fans:

• Craziest fan story… hmm… I remember a woman following me out of the grocery store, wiping dirt off my car, holding up her hand and saying "I will take this home to my children." That felt outside the realm of normal adult behavior to me...

• I also remember driving and hearing screams, and it was because there was a Mom in a minivan full of girls chasing me through town. All the younger fan stories are sweet. It's the adults who get weird.

And Just Because...

• We're thankful to the AmA for nothing if for nothing else than the reminder that this David LaChapelle photo of the star exists:

Image: David LaChapelle/Imgur