Hawke obtained his mother's permission to attend his first casting call at the age of 14, and secured his first film role in Joe Dante's "Explorers" (1985), in which he played an alien-obsessed schoolboy alongside River Phoenix. The film was favorably reviewed but had poor box office results. This failure caused Hawke to quit acting for a brief period after the film's release. Hawke later described the disappointment as difficult to bear at such a young age, adding, "I would never recommend that a kid act."