I Am the Iconic Line Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: An Interview.

The action icon is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. Yet, at the height of his blockbuster fame in the eighties and nineties, he also delivered several critically acclaimed comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its 35th anniversary this December.

The Story and That Line

In the classic film, Schwarzenegger embodies a hardened detective who poses as a schoolteacher to catch a killer. During the film's runtime, the investigation plot acts as a simple backdrop for Arnold to film humorous moments with his young class. Arguably the most famous involves a little boy named Joseph, who spontaneously announces and informs the former bodybuilder, “It's boys who have a penis, girls have a vagina.” The Terminator replies icily, “I appreciate the insight.”

That iconic child was brought to life by child star Miko Hughes. His career featured a character arc on Full House as the bully to the famous sisters and the character of the resurrected boy in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with a slate of movies listed on his IMDb. Furthermore, he engages with fans at the con circuit. Recently discussed his recollections from the production over three decades on.

Memories from the Set

Question: Starting off, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

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

That's impressive, I don't recall being four. Do you remember anything from that time?

Yeah, a little bit. They're brief images. They're like mental photographs.

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

My mother, mainly would accompany me to auditions. Sometimes it was an open call. There'd be dozens of children and we'd all patiently queue, enter the casting office, be in there for a very short time, read a small part they wanted and then leave. My parents would feed me the lines 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 extremely gentle. He was enjoyable. He was nice, which I suppose stands to reason. It would have been odd if he was mean 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 be strange if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom.”

I knew he was a big action star because I was told, but I had barely seen his movies. I felt the importance — it was exciting — but he didn't frighten me. He was merely entertaining and I just wanted to play with him when he had time. He was busy, obviously, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd flex and we'd be dangling there. He was exceptionally kind. He gifted all the students in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was like an iPhone. That was the coolest device, 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 have a genuine metal whistle. He had the coach whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being fun?

You know, it's interesting, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a major production, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, working with [director] Ivan Reitman, traveling to Oregon, the production design, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. For example, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was brand new. That was the big craze, and I was quite skilled. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would ask for my help to get past hard parts on games because I could do it, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all little kid memories.

That Famous Quote

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

At the time, I probably didn't know what the word shocking meant, but I understood it was edgy and it caused the crew to chuckle. I was aware it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given special permission in this case because it was humorous.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it came about, from what I understand, was they didn't have specific roles. Certain bits of dialogue were established early on, but once they had the kids together, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they refined it on set and, I suppose someone in charge came to my mom and said, "We're thinking. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "Give me a moment, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a day or two. She really wrestled with it. She said she was hesitant, but she felt it will probably be one of the most memorable lines from the movie and she was right.