I Was the Iconic Line Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: A Candid Conversation.

The Austrian Oak is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. Yet, during the peak of his cinematic dominance in the eighties and nineties, he also headlined several critically acclaimed comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its three-and-a-half decade milestone this December.

The Film and An Iconic Moment

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger plays a tough police officer who goes undercover as a kindergarten teacher to locate a fugitive. Throughout the movie, the procedural element acts as a loose framework for Arnold to film humorous scenes with children. The most unforgettable involves a child named Joseph, who out of nowhere announces and declares the actor, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger deadpans, “Thank you for that information.”

The boy behind the line was brought to life by child star Miko Hughes. His career featured a character arc on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the Olsen twins and the pivotal role of the resurrected boy in the screen translation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He still works in film today, with several projects in development. Furthermore, he engages with fans at the con circuit. Recently shared his recollections from the set of Kindergarten Cop over three decades on.

Memories from the Set

Interviewer: First, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

Miko Hughes: I believe I was four. I was the most junior of all the kids on set.

That's remarkable, I don't recall being four. Do you have any memories from that time?

Yeah, a little bit. They're flashes. They're like picture memories.

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My parents, primarily my mom would bring me to auditions. Sometimes it was an open call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all patiently queue, go into the room, be in there for a very short time, do whatever little line they wanted and that's all. My parents would feed me the lines and then, as soon as I could read, that was some of the first material I was reading.

Do you have an impression of meeting Arnold? What was your impression of him?

He was very kind. He was playful. He was good-natured, which I guess isn't too surprising. It would have been odd if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that probably wouldn't make for a good work environment. He was a joy to have on set.

“It would have been odd if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom.”

I knew he was a huge celebrity because that's what my parents told me, but I had never really seen his movies. I sensed the excitement — he was a big deal — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was simply playful and I just wanted to play with him when he was available. He was occupied, of course, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would hang off of his arms. He'd tense up and we'd be holding on. He was exceptionally kind. He gifted all the students in the classroom a yellow cassette player, which at the time was the hottest tech. This was the must-have gadget, that distinctive classic yellow cassette player. I used to rock out to the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for a long time on that thing. It finally gave out. I also received a real silver whistle. He had the referee's whistle, and the kids all received one too as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being enjoyable?

You know, it's amusing, that movie was this cultural thing. It was such a big movie, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the legendary director, visiting Astoria, the production design, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. For instance, they got everyone pizza, but I avoided pizza. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was just released. That was the hot thing, and I was proficient. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would bring me their Game Boys to pass certain levels on games because I was able to, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

The Line

OK, the penis and vagina line, do you remember the context? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word taboo meant, but I realized it got a reaction and it made adults laugh. I knew it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given special permission in this case because it was funny.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it was conceived, from what I understand, was they were still developing characters. Some character lines were written into the script, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it was more of a collaboration, but they worked on it while filming and, presumably the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "Let me think about it, I need time" and took a day or two. She really wrestled with it. She said she wasn't sure, but she believed it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and her instinct was correct.