I Am the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from Kindergarten Cop: A Look Back.

The action icon is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. Yet, in the midst of his cinematic dominance in the 1980s and 1990s, he also starred in several surprisingly great comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35th anniversary this December.

The Role and An Iconic Moment

In the classic film, Schwarzenegger embodies a undercover cop who masquerades as a schoolteacher to track down a criminal. During the movie, the investigation plot acts as a basic structure for Schwarzenegger to share adorable scenes with children. The most unforgettable belongs to a little boy named Joseph, who out of nowhere announces and informs the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger replies icily, “Thanks for the tip.”

That iconic child was portrayed by child star Miko Hughes. His career included a character arc on Full House as the bully to the famous sisters and the haunting part of the youngster who comes back in the film version of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with several projects on the horizon. Furthermore, he engages with fans at the con circuit. Recently shared his experiences from the filming of the classic after all this time.

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.

Wow, I have no memory from being four. Do you have any memories from that time?

Yeah, to a degree. They're snapshots. They're like visual recollections.

Do you recall how you landed the job 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 simply wait around, be seen, be in there less than five minutes, deliver a quick line they wanted and then leave. My parents would help me learn the words and then, once I learned to read, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

Do you have a specific memory of meeting Arnold? What was your take on him?

He was extremely gentle. He was fun. He was good-natured, which I guess stands to reason. It'd be weird if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom, that likely wouldn't create a positive atmosphere. He was great to work with.

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

I knew he was a major movie star because I was told, but I had never really seen his movies. I knew the air around him — it was exciting — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was simply playful and I just wanted to play with him when he had time. He was working hard, but he'd sometimes engage here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd flex and we'd be hanging off. He was incredibly giving. He gifted all the students in the classroom a yellow cassette player, which at the time was like an iPhone. It was the must-have gadget, that iconic bright yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for ages on that thing. It wore out in time. I also received a genuine metal whistle. He had the referee's whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.

Do you remember your experience as being enjoyable?

You know, it's funny, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a major production, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of working with Arnold, the legendary director, traveling to Oregon, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a finitely child at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was brand new. That was the hot thing, and I was pretty good at it. I was the youngest and some of the older kids would bring me their Game Boys to pass certain levels on games because I knew how, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all little kid memories.

The Infamous Moment

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember the context? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word shocking meant, but I realized it got a reaction and it got a big laugh. I was aware it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given approval in this case because it was funny.

“My mom thought hard about it.”

How it came about, based on what I was told, was they didn't have specific roles. Some character lines were written into the script, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they refined it on set and, presumably it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "We have an idea. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. 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 was hesitant, but she thought it could end up as one of the most memorable lines from the movie and history proved her correct.