I Was the ‘Boys Have a Penis’ Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: An Interview.

The action icon is rightfully celebrated as an iconic tough guy. However, during the peak of his blockbuster fame in the eighties and nineties, he also delivered several critically acclaimed comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35th anniversary this winter.

The Story and The Famous Scene

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger plays a undercover cop who poses as a schoolteacher to locate a fugitive. For much of the film's runtime, the crime storyline serves as a loose framework for Arnold to share adorable interactions with kids. Arguably the most famous involves a child named Joseph, who out of nowhere rises and informs the actor, “Males have a penis, females have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger replies icily, “Thanks for the tip.”

That iconic child was played by former young actor Miko Hughes. In addition to this part encompassed a notable part on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the child stars and the character of the youngster who comes back in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with several projects on the horizon. Additionally, he frequently attends fan conventions. Recently shared his recollections from the production over three decades on.

Behind the Scenes

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

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

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

Yeah, a little bit. They're snapshots. They're like visual recollections.

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

My family, especially my mother would accompany me to auditions. Frequently it was a mass tryout. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all patiently queue, go into the room, be in there less than five minutes, deliver a quick line they wanted and that was it. My parents would help me learn the words and then, when I became literate, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

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

He was very kind. He was enjoyable. He was nice, which I guess isn't too surprising. It'd be weird if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a good work environment. He was a joy to have on set.

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

I was aware he was a big action star because I was told, but I had never really seen his movies. I sensed the excitement — it was exciting — but he wasn't scary to me. He was just fun 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 hang off of his arms. He'd tense up and we'd be holding on. He was exceptionally kind. He gifted all the students in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was a major status symbol. It was the must-have gadget, that distinctive classic yellow cassette player. I listened to the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for a long time on that thing. It eventually broke. 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 time filming as being positive?

You know, it's interesting, that movie was this cultural thing. It was such a big movie, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the direction of Ivan Reitman, traveling to Oregon, the production design, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the original Game Boy was brand new. That was the coolest toy, and I was quite skilled. I was the youngest and some of the other children would hand me their devices to get past hard parts on games because I was able to, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all childhood recollections.

The Line

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember the context? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I probably didn't know what the word taboo meant, but I realized it got a reaction and it made adults laugh. I understood it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given special permission in this case because it was funny.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it originated, according to family lore, was they didn't have specific roles. Certain bits of dialogue were established early on, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it was more of a collaboration, but they developed it during shooting and, I suppose someone in charge came to my mom and said, "We have an idea. We want Miko to say this. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "Give me a moment, I'll decide tomorrow" and took some time. She really wrestled with it. She said she had doubts, but she thought it will probably be one of the most memorable lines from the movie and history proved her correct.