Duchovny had worked in Los Angeles for three years prior to "The X-Files"; at first he wanted to focus on feature films. In 1993, his manager, Melanie Green, gave him the script for the pilot episode of "The X-Files". Green and Duchovny were both convinced it was a good script, so he auditioned for the lead. Duchovny's audition was "terrific", though he talked rather slowly. While the casting director of the show was very positive toward him, Carter thought that he was not particularly intelligent. He asked Duchovny if he could "please" imagine himself as an FBI agent in "future" episodes. Duchovny, however, turned out to be one of the best-read people that Carter knew.