I Am the ‘Boys Have a Penis’ Kid from Kindergarten Cop: An Interview.

The action icon is best known as an iconic tough guy. Yet, at the height of his cinematic dominance in the late 20th century, he also delivered several critically acclaimed comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its 35th anniversary this holiday season.

The Role and The Famous Scene

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger embodies a hardened detective who masquerades as a kindergarten teacher to locate a fugitive. During the film's runtime, the procedural element functions as a loose framework for the star to share adorable scenes with children. The most unforgettable features a child named Joseph, who out of nowhere rises and declares the actor, “Males have a penis, girls have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger replies icily, “I appreciate the insight.”

The young actor was brought to life by former young actor Miko Hughes. Beyond this role encompassed a character arc on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the famous sisters and the haunting part of the resurrected boy in the screen translation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with a slate of movies listed on his IMDb. Furthermore, he frequently attends the con circuit. Recently discussed his memories from the filming of the classic after all this time.

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 youngest 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 flashes. They're like mental photographs.

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My parents, primarily my mom would accompany me to auditions. Often it was like a cattle call. There'd be a room full of young actors 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 help me learn the words 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 extremely gentle. He was playful. He was nice, which I guess stands to reason. It would have been odd if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that likely wouldn't create a good work environment. He was great to work with.

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

I understood he was a big action star because my family informed me, but I had not actually watched his movies. I knew the air around him — like, that's cool — but he didn't frighten me. He was merely entertaining and I just wanted to play with him when he was available. He was busy, obviously, 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 incredibly giving. He purchased for each child in the classroom a yellow cassette player, which at the time was like an iPhone. That was the coolest device, that distinctive classic yellow cassette player. I used to rock out to the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for ages on that thing. It eventually broke. I also received a genuine metal whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being positive?

You know, it's amusing, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a major production, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, as an adult, I would want my memories to be of working with Arnold, the direction of Ivan Reitman, visiting Astoria, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was just released. That was the big craze, and I was pretty good at it. I was the youngest and some of the older kids would ask for my help to get past hard parts on games because I was able to, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all little kid memories.

The Line

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember anything about it? Did you grasp the meaning?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word provocative meant, but I realized it got a reaction and it got a big laugh. I was aware it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given approval in this case because it was funny.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it came about, from what I understand, was they were still developing characters. Certain bits of dialogue were part of the original screenplay, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they refined it on set and, I suppose it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "We have an idea. We want Miko to say this. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't answer immediately. She said, "Let me think about it, I need time" and took a day or two. It was a tough call for her. She said she was hesitant, but she felt it will probably be one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and history proved her correct.