I'm Known As the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: An Interview.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is universally recognized as an iconic tough guy. But, in the midst of his blockbuster fame in the 1980s and 1990s, he also headlined several critically acclaimed comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35-year mark this holiday season.

The Role and An Iconic Moment

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger portrays a hardened detective who goes undercover as a elementary educator to track down a criminal. For much of the story, the crime storyline functions as a basic structure for Schwarzenegger to have charming moments with his young class. The most unforgettable belongs to a little boy named Joseph, who out of nowhere announces and informs the actor, “It's boys who have a penis, females have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger responds dryly, “I appreciate the insight.”

The young actor was portrayed by youth performer Miko Hughes. His career included a notable part on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the child stars and the haunting part of the resurrected boy in the film version 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. He recently shared his recollections from the filming of the classic 35 years later.

Behind the Scenes

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

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

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

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

Do you recall how you got the part in Kindergarten Cop?

My mother, mainly would take me to auditions. Sometimes it was like a cattle call. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all simply wait around, enter the casting office, be in there briefly, do whatever little line they wanted and that was it. 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 feeling about him?

He was very kind. He was playful. He was nice, which I guess isn't too surprising. It'd be weird if he was a dick 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 would have been odd if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom.”

I understood he was a huge celebrity because my family informed me, but I had barely seen his movies. I felt the importance — it was exciting — but he didn't frighten me. He was just fun and I just wanted to play with him when he wasn't busy. He was occupied, of course, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd tense up and we'd be hanging off. He was incredibly giving. He bought every kid in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was like an iPhone. It was the must-have gadget, that funky old yellow cassette player. I listened to 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 authentic coach's whistle. He had the teacher'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 funny, that movie is such a landmark. It was such a big movie, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the legendary director, the location shoot, seeing the set, 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 toppings only. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was brand new. That was the big craze, and I was proficient. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would hand me their devices to beat difficult stages on games because I was able to, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

The Line

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember how it happened? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word provocative meant, but I knew it was provocative and it caused the crew to chuckle. I understood it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given special permission in this case because it was funny.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it originated, based on what I was told, was they didn't have specific roles. Some character lines were part of the original screenplay, but once they had the kids together, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they worked on it while filming and, reportedly the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "We're thinking. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't agree right away. She said, "Let me think about it, let me sleep on it" and took a short while. It was a tough call for her. She said she had doubts, but she felt it will probably be one of the most memorable lines from the movie and history proved her correct.