I Was the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from Kindergarten Cop: An Interview.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is universally recognized as an action movie legend. But, in the midst of his star power in the 1980s and 1990s, he also delivered several surprisingly great comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35th anniversary this holiday season.

The Film and An Iconic Moment

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger plays a undercover cop who poses as a schoolteacher to locate a fugitive. For much of the movie, the investigation plot acts as a loose framework for Arnold to have charming moments with his young class. Without a doubt the standout involves a student named Joseph, who out of nowhere rises and states the stoic star, “Males have a penis, and girls get a vagina.” The Terminator replies icily, “I appreciate the insight.”

The young actor was played by former young actor Miko Hughes. His career included a recurring role on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the Olsen twins and the character of the child who returns in the screen translation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He still works in film today, with several projects on the horizon. Additionally, he engages with fans at fan conventions. He recently recalled his memories from the filming of the classic after all this time.

A Young Actor's Perspective

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 impressive, I can't remember 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 were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My family, especially my mother would bring me to auditions. Sometimes it was a mass tryout. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all patiently queue, go into the room, be in there less than five minutes, read a small part they wanted and that's all. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, when I became literate, that was some of the first material I was reading.

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

He was incredibly nice. He was fun. He was nice, which I guess stands to reason. It'd be weird if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that likely wouldn't create a positive atmosphere. He was a joy to have on set.

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

I was aware he was a huge celebrity because that's what my parents told 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 only wanted to hang out with him when he had time. He was occupied, of course, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would dangle from his limbs. He'd flex and we'd be holding on. He was really, really generous. He purchased for each child in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was a major status symbol. This was the hottest tech out there, that iconic bright yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for years on that thing on that thing. It eventually broke. I also was given a real silver whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your experience as being fun?

You know, it's interesting, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a major production, and it was an incredible opportunity, 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, the production design, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. For instance, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was brand new. That was the big craze, and I was quite skilled. I was the youngest and some of the older kids would bring me their Game Boys to beat difficult stages on games because I was able to, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all little kid memories.

The Infamous Moment

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember anything about it? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word taboo meant, but I understood it was edgy 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 originated, from what I understand, was they hadn't finalized all the dialogue. Certain bits of dialogue were established early on, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they worked on it while filming and, reportedly it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to say this. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't agree right away. She said, "I need to consider this, let me sleep on it" and took a day or two. It was a tough call for her. She said she was hesitant, but she believed it would likely become one of the iconic quotes from the movie and her instinct was correct.