I Am the Iconic Line Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: A Candid Conversation.

The Austrian Oak is best known as an action movie legend. But, during the peak of his cinematic dominance in the 1980s and 1990s, he also starred in several critically acclaimed comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its 35-year mark this holiday season.

The Role and That Line

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger embodies a tough police officer who masquerades as a kindergarten teacher to catch a killer. During the film's runtime, the procedural element functions as a simple backdrop for Schwarzenegger to film humorous scenes with children. Without a doubt the standout belongs to a child named Joseph, who spontaneously announces and informs the actor, “Boys have a penis, girls have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger replies icily, “I appreciate the insight.”

That iconic child was played by youth performer Miko Hughes. Beyond this role encompassed a recurring role on Full House as the bully to the famous sisters and the haunting part of the child who returns in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He still works in film today, with multiple films in development. He also frequently attends the con circuit. Not long ago discussed his memories from the set of Kindergarten Cop 35 years later.

Behind the Scenes

Q: To begin, 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.

Wow, I can't remember being four. Do you have any memories from that time?

Yeah, to a degree. They're flashes. They're like visual recollections.

Do you recall how you landed the job in Kindergarten Cop?

My parents, primarily my mom would accompany me to auditions. Sometimes it was like a cattle call. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all simply wait around, go into the room, be in there for a very short time, deliver a quick line they wanted and then leave. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, once I learned to 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 incredibly nice. He was enjoyable. He was nice, which arguably isn't too surprising. It'd be weird if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that probably wouldn't make for a positive atmosphere. He was a joy to have on set.

“It'd be weird if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom.”

I understood he was a major movie star because that's what my parents told me, but I had not actually watched his movies. I sensed the excitement — it was exciting — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was just fun and I was eager to interact with him when he had time. He was working hard, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would hang off of his arms. He'd flex and we'd be hanging off. He was really, really generous. He bought every kid in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was a major status symbol. This was the must-have gadget, that funky old yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for years on that thing on that thing. It finally gave out. I also was given a genuine metal whistle. He had the coach whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being fun?

You know, it's amusing, that movie is such a landmark. It was a major production, and it was an incredible opportunity, and you would think, as an adult, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the direction of Ivan Reitman, visiting Astoria, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. For instance, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was new. That was the hot thing, and I was quite skilled. I was the smallest kid and some of the older kids would ask for my help to pass certain levels on games because I could do it, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

The Infamous Moment

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember how it happened? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I probably didn't know what the word shocking meant, but I knew it was provocative and it made adults laugh. I understood it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given approval in this case because it was humorous.

“My mom thought hard about it.”

How it was conceived, based on what I was told, was they didn't have specific roles. Some character lines were established early on, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they developed it during shooting and, presumably the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't answer immediately. She said, "Let me think about it, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a short while. She deliberated carefully. She said she wasn't sure, but she felt it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and her instinct was correct.