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

The Austrian Oak is best known as an iconic tough guy. However, during the peak of his cinematic dominance in the eighties and nineties, he also delivered several surprisingly great comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its three-and-a-half decade milestone this winter.

The Film and The Famous Scene

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger embodies a undercover cop who goes undercover as a kindergarten teacher to track down a criminal. For much of the story, the procedural element serves as a simple backdrop for Arnold to have charming interactions with kids. The most unforgettable belongs to a little boy named Joseph, who out of nowhere stands up and informs the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger deadpans, “Thank you for that information.”

That iconic child was brought to life by youth performer Miko Hughes. In addition to this part encompassed a notable part on Full House as the bully to the famous sisters and the character of the child who returns in the film version of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with multiple films listed on his IMDb. Additionally, he frequently attends popular culture events. He recently shared his recollections from the filming of the classic after all this time.

Memories from the Set

Q: To begin, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

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

That's remarkable, I can't remember being four. Do you remember anything 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 family, especially my mother would take me to auditions. Frequently it was an open 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, do whatever little line they wanted and that's all. 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 impression of him?

He was very kind. He was enjoyable. He was good-natured, which arguably 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 great to work with.

“It would have been odd if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom.”

I was aware he was a big action star 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 just fun and I just wanted to play with him when he had time. He was busy, obviously, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd tense up and we'd be hanging off. He was incredibly giving. He gifted all the students in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was like an iPhone. 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 years on that thing on that thing. It eventually broke. I also have a real silver whistle. He had the referee's whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being enjoyable?

You know, it's amusing, that movie was this cultural thing. It was such a big movie, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of collaborating with Schwarzenegger, working with [director] Ivan Reitman, the location shoot, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. For example, 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 just released. That was the hot thing, 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 youthful anecdotes.

The Infamous Moment

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember the context? Did you grasp the meaning?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word taboo meant, but I understood it was edgy and it caused the crew to chuckle. I understood it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given special permission in this case because it was humorous.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it originated, based on what I was told, was they were still developing characters. A few scenes were part of the original screenplay, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they worked on it while filming and, reportedly the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't answer immediately. She said, "I need to consider this, let me sleep on it" and took some time. She deliberated carefully. She said she wasn't sure, but she believed it will probably be one of the iconic quotes from the movie and she was right.