In 1986, Locke made her feature directorial debut with "Ratboy", a fable about a youth who is half-rat, produced by Eastwood's company Malpaso. When asked why she'd been absent from her longtime beau's recent star vehicles, Locke replied simply, "I wasn't right for the roles." "Ratboy" had limited distribution in the United States, where it was a critical and financial flop, but was well received in Europe, with French newspaper "Le Parisien" calling it the highlight of the Deauville Film Festival.