{"id":2224748,"date":"2026-01-06T19:35:32","date_gmt":"2026-01-06T19:35:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/?p=2224748"},"modified":"2026-01-06T19:35:32","modified_gmt":"2026-01-06T19:35:32","slug":"ethan-hawke-broke-his-foot-as-a-teen-crashing-river-phoenixs-dads-stolen-motorcycle-it-was-a-nightmare","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/ethan-hawke-broke-his-foot-as-a-teen-crashing-river-phoenixs-dads-stolen-motorcycle-it-was-a-nightmare\/","title":{"rendered":"Ethan Hawke broke his foot as a teen crashing River Phoenix&#8217;s dad&#8217;s stolen motorcycle: &#8216;It was a nightmare&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div data-article-body=\"true\">\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ew.com\/person\/ethan-hawke\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Ethan Hawke;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Ethan Hawke<\/a> is remembering the time he broke his foot as a young teen crashing <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ew.com\/person\/river-phoenix\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:River Phoenix;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">River Phoenix<\/a>\u2019s dad\u2019s stolen motorcycle.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">While visiting <em><a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ew.com\/the-late-show-with-stephen-colbert\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:The Late Show;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">The Late Show<\/a> <\/em>on Monday, the Emmy-winning actor reflected on the hijinks that he and the late Phoenix would get up to while they were shooting their 1985 sci-fi film <em>Explorers<\/em>.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cA little bit after that picture, River and I stole his father\u2019s motorcycle and I crashed it,\u201d Hawke said, sending host <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ew.com\/person\/stephen-colbert\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Stephen Colbert;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Stephen Colbert<\/a> into a fit of laughter. \u201cThe bike was fine, but my foot was broken.\u201d<\/p>\n<figure class=\"relative mb-4\">\n<div class=\"relative\"><button aria-label=\"View larger image\" class=\"group absolute bottom-3 right-3 size-10 md:size-[50px] lg:inset-0 lg:size-full lg:bg-transparent\" data-ylk=\"elm:expand;itc:1;sec:image-lightbox;slk:lightbox-open;\"><span class=\"absolute bottom-0 right-0 rounded-full bg-white p-3 opacity-100 shadow-elevation-3 transition-opacity duration-300 group-hover:block group-hover:opacity-100 md:p-[17px] lg:bottom-6 lg:right-6 lg:bg-white\/90 lg:p-5 lg:opacity-0 lg:shadow-none\"><svg viewbox=\"0 0 22 22\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\"size-4 lg:size-6\" width=\"22\" height=\"22\"><path d=\"M12.372.92c0-.506.41-.916.915-.916L21 0l-.004 7.712a.917.917 0 0 1-1.832 0V3.183l-6.827 6.828-1.349-1.348 6.828-6.828h-4.529a.915.915 0 0 1-.915-.915M1.835 17.816l6.828-6.828 1.349 1.349-6.829 6.827h4.529a.915.915 0 0 1 0 1.831L0 21l.004-7.713a.916.916 0 0 1 1.831 0z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><dialog aria-label=\"Modal Dialog\" aria-modal=\"true\" class=\"fixed inset-0 z-4 size-full max-h-none max-w-none bg-white hidden\"\/><\/div><figcaption class=\"relative text-sm mt-1 pr-2.5\">\n<div style=\"max-height:none;overflow:visible\">\n<p>Paramount\/Courtesy Everett<\/p>\n<p> Phoenix and Hawke in &#8216;Explorers&#8217;<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Still, the <em>Lowdown<\/em> star revealed that he didn\u2019t seek medical attention for the agonizing injury until the next day so Phoenix wouldn&#8217;t get in trouble for their unauthorized joy ride.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cRiver said, \u2018Ethan, my dad cannot know we were riding the bike,\u2019\u201d Hawke recalled. \u201cAnd I was spending the night at his house \u2014\u00a0my mom wasn\u2019t picking me up until the next morning \u2014\u00a0he was like, \u2018You have to get through this night and you go to the hospital at your mom\u2019s house.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The 55-year-old explained that he went along with Phoenix\u2019s plan because \u201cwe couldn\u2019t get in trouble\u201d and, as a result, had to create some inventive methods for pain management that night.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cI went into their kitchen and I just cried, \u2018My foot is killing me!\u2019\u201d Hawke exclaimed.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">While he may have managed to evade getting a scolding from Phoenix\u2019s parents, Hawke\u2019s broken foot required production on <em>Explorers<\/em> to be \u201cshut down\u201d while he recuperated. \u201cI mean, it was a nightmare,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\"><strong><em>Get your daily dose of entertainment news, celebrity updates, and what to watch with\u00a0our\u00a0<a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ew.com\/ew-dispatch-newsletter-11812417\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:EW Dispatch newsletter;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">EW Dispatch newsletter<\/a>.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Hawke was just 14 years old when he made his film debut in Joe Dante\u2019s <em>Explorers<\/em> as Ben, a young boy who is inspired to build a spaceship with his best friends (Phoenix and Jason Presson) after waking up from a vivid dream.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Eight years later, Phoenix <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ew.com\/gallery\/river-phoenix-director-remembers-final-role\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:died from a drug overdose;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">died from a drug overdose<\/a> at age 23 outside of the Viper Room in West Hollywood. Hawke paid tribute to his late friend and recalled one of their very first moments together while accepting the Career Achievement Award at the Palm Springs Film Awards over the weekend.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">\u201cI remember being 13. I was staying at a Radisson Hotel up by San Francisco, watching out my window as a 14-year old River Phoenix walked back and forth across the parking lot,\u201d Hawke remembered, per <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.hollywoodreporter.com\/movies\/movie-news\/ethan-hawke-river-phoenix-speech-film-awards-friendship-1236463274\/\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:The Hollywood Reporter;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \"><em>The Hollywood Reporter<\/em><\/a>. \u201cI went outside and I asked him, \u2018What are you doing?\u2019 And he said, \u2018I\u2019m practicing my character\u2019s walk.\u2019 He auditioned a series of walks for me, and it had never occurred to me to walk any other way but as cool as possible. That\u2019s all I thought about.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">The pair quickly formed a fast friendship by sharing their unique interests with one another.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019d never read a book. I gave him<em> Catcher in the Rye<\/em>. I had never listened to punk rock, and he gave me cassettes. I didn\u2019t know what a vegetarian was. He showed me documentaries about slaughterhouses and the damage they were doing to our environment,\u201d Hawke said. \u201cHe will always be a part of me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Watch Hawke discuss breaking his foot in the clip above.<\/p>\n<p class=\"mb-4 text-lg md:leading-8 break-words\">Read the original article on <a rel=\"nofollow\" target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/ew.com\/ethan-hawke-broke-his-foot-as-a-teen-crashing-river-phoenix-dad-stolen-motorcycle-11880004\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\" data-ylk=\"slk:Entertainment Weekly;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas\" class=\"link \">Entertainment Weekly<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p><em> \u2018 The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n<p><em> \u2018 Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.yahoo.com \u2019 <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Ethan Hawke is remembering the time he broke his foot as a young teen crashing River Phoenix\u2019s dad\u2019s stolen motorcycle.\u00a0 While visiting The Late Show on Monday, the Emmy-winning actor reflected on the hijinks that he and the late Phoenix would get up to while they were shooting their 1985 sci-fi film Explorers.\u00a0 \u201cA little [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2224749,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[25177],"tags":[430361,312614,348970,22653],"class_list":["post-2224748","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrities","tag-broken-foot","tag-ethan-hawke","tag-river-phoenix","tag-stephen-colbert"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Ethan-Hawke-broke-his-foot-as-a-teen-crashing-River.jpeg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2224748","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2224748"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2224748\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2224750,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2224748\/revisions\/2224750"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2224749"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2224748"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2224748"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/celebrity.land\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2224748"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}