I Am the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: A Candid Conversation.

The action icon is universally recognized as an action movie legend. Yet, at the height of his cinematic dominance in the 1980s and 1990s, he also headlined several critically acclaimed comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its 35-year mark this holiday season.

The Film and That Line

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger portrays a tough police officer who masquerades as a elementary educator to track down a criminal. For much of the movie, the investigation plot functions as a loose framework for Arnold to have charming scenes with children. The most unforgettable features a child named Joseph, who spontaneously rises and informs the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, and girls get a vagina.” Schwarzenegger responds dryly, “I appreciate the insight.”

The young actor was played by youth performer Miko Hughes. In addition to this part encompassed a character arc on Full House as the bully to the famous sisters and the haunting part of the child who returns in the film version of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with a slate of movies listed on his IMDb. Additionally, he is a regular on popular culture events. Not long ago discussed his recollections from the production after all this time.

A Young Actor's Perspective

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

Miko Hughes: My understanding is I was four. I was the most junior of all the kids on set.

Wow, I have no memory from being four. Do you remember anything from that time?

Yeah, to a degree. They're flashes. They're like mental photographs.

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My parents, primarily my mom would take me to auditions. Often it was a mass tryout. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all simply wait around, enter the casting office, be in there for a very short time, read a small part they wanted and that's all. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, as soon as I could read, that was the initial content I was reading.

Do you have any recollection of meeting Arnold? What was your take on him?

He was very kind. He was enjoyable. He was good-natured, which I suppose makes sense. It would have been odd if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom, that probably wouldn't make for a productive set. He was fun to be around.

“It would be strange if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom.”

I knew he was a big action star because my family informed me, but I had barely seen his movies. I sensed the excitement — like, that's cool — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was simply playful and I just wanted to play with him when he wasn't busy. He was working hard, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would dangle from his limbs. He'd flex and we'd be hanging off. He was exceptionally kind. He bought every kid in the classroom a yellow cassette player, which at the time was a major status symbol. It was the hottest tech out there, that distinctive classic 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 was given a genuine metal whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all received one too as well.

Do you remember your experience as being positive?

You know, it's funny, that movie became a phenomenon. It was a huge film, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, as an adult, I would want my memories to be of collaborating with Schwarzenegger, the direction of Ivan Reitman, traveling to Oregon, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. For example, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the pepperoni off the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was just released. That was the hot thing, and I was quite skilled. I was the youngest and some of the bigger kids would bring me their Game Boys to beat difficult stages on games because I could do it, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

That Famous Quote

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

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word shocking meant, but I knew it was provocative and it made adults laugh. I knew it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given approval in this case because it was comedic.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it originated, according to family lore, was they didn't have specific roles. Some character lines were written into the script, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they worked on it while filming and, presumably someone in charge came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "Let me think about it, I'll decide tomorrow" and took some time. It was a tough call for her. She said she wasn't sure, but she felt it will probably be one of the iconic quotes from the movie and she was right.