'One Thing' heartthrob Zayn Malik has opened up about his reputation in the boy band and admitted that he likes playing up to his 'bad boy' image because it's "cool".

Speaking to Seventeen magazine, he explained that because of his growing collection of tattoos he is often looked at as the rebel of One Direction, but doesn't mind at all: "I like the term misunderstood, but I am a bit of a bad boy. I have tattoos and I mess around. That's part of my image, so it's cool."

Despite the somewhat naughty or mischeivous stereotype that follows Malik, he added that he's a very "straightfoward" person who values honesty: "Me being who I am, I'm very straightforward. Everything is black and white for me. I don't really like playing mind games."

In the same interview, member Liam Payne also spoke about his recent split from girlfriend Danielle Peazer, admitting: "I am really devastated by the breakup with Danielle. We had an amazing time together, but unfortunately sometimes things don't go as you planned."