I'm Known As the Iconic Line Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: A Candid Conversation.

The action icon is universally recognized as an iconic tough guy. However, at the height of his star power in the late 20th century, he also delivered several surprisingly great comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its three-and-a-half decade milestone this December.

The Role and An Iconic Moment

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger embodies a tough police officer who masquerades as a kindergarten teacher to track down a criminal. During the story, the procedural element acts as a simple backdrop for the star to have charming moments with his young class. Arguably the most famous involves a little boy named Joseph, who out of nowhere rises and declares the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” The Terminator replies icily, “Thank you for that information.”

The young actor was brought to life by former young actor Miko Hughes. His career encompassed a recurring role on Full House playing the antagonist to the child stars and the character of the resurrected boy in the screen translation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with multiple films listed on his IMDb. He also engages with fans at fan conventions. He recently discussed his memories from the set of Kindergarten Cop over three decades on.

Memories from the Set

Question: Starting off, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

Miko Hughes: I think I was four. I was the most junior of all the kids on set.

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

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

Do you recall how you landed the job in Kindergarten Cop?

My parents, primarily my mom would take me to auditions. Often it was like a cattle call. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all just have to wait, be seen, be in there less than five minutes, do whatever little line they wanted and then leave. My parents would help me learn the words and then, when I became literate, that was some of the first material I was reading.

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

He was incredibly nice. He was enjoyable. He was good-natured, which I suppose makes sense. It would have been odd if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that probably wouldn't make for a productive set. He was a joy to have on set.

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

I was aware he was a major movie star because my family informed me, but I had not actually watched his movies. I felt the importance — he was a big deal — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was simply playful and I was eager to interact with him when he was available. He was working hard, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would dangle from his limbs. He'd tense up and we'd be holding on. He was incredibly giving. He gifted all the students in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was the hottest tech. That was the must-have gadget, that funky old 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 was given a authentic coach's whistle. He had the coach 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 became a phenomenon. It was such a big movie, 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 legendary director, visiting Astoria, seeing the set, 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 toppings only. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was new. That was the coolest toy, and I was quite skilled. I was the youngest and some of the other children would ask for my help to pass certain levels on games because I knew how, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all childhood recollections.

That Famous Quote

OK, the penis and vagina line, do you remember how it happened? Did you grasp the meaning?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word provocative meant, but I understood it was edgy and it got a big laugh. I understood it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given approval in this case because it was humorous.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it was conceived, based on what I was told, was they hadn't finalized all the dialogue. A few scenes were written into the script, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they worked on it while filming and, presumably the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "We're thinking. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "Give me a moment, I need time" and took some time. She deliberated carefully. She said she had doubts, but she believed it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and she was right.