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

The Austrian Oak is best known as an action movie legend. However, during the peak of his star power in the late 20th century, he also starred in several surprisingly great comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35-year mark this holiday season.

The Story and An Iconic Moment

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger portrays a tough police officer who goes undercover as a schoolteacher to track down a criminal. For much of the movie, the procedural element acts as a loose framework for the star to share adorable interactions with kids. Without a doubt the standout belongs to a student named Joseph, who spontaneously rises and declares the former bodybuilder, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” Arnold replies icily, “Thanks for the tip.”

The young actor was brought to life by youth performer Miko Hughes. Beyond this role featured a notable part on Full House playing the antagonist to the Olsen twins 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. He also is a regular on popular culture events. Not long ago shared his experiences from the set of Kindergarten Cop 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 most junior of all the kids on set.

That's impressive, I don't recall being four. Do you retain any flashes from that time?

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

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

My parents, primarily my mom would bring me to auditions. Sometimes it was an open call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all simply wait around, go into the room, be in there briefly, deliver a quick line they wanted and then leave. My parents would help me learn the words and then, as soon as I could read, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

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

He was extremely gentle. He was playful. He was pleasant, 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 great to work with.

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

I understood he was a huge celebrity because I was told, but I had never really seen his movies. I felt the importance — like, that's cool — but he didn't frighten me. He was just fun and I was eager to interact with him when he was available. He was working hard, but he'd sometimes engage here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd show his strength and we'd be dangling there. He was really, really generous. He gifted all the students in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was the hottest tech. That was the coolest device, that distinctive classic yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for a long time on that thing. It eventually broke. I also received a genuine metal 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 funny, that movie is such a landmark. It was a major production, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, as an adult, I would want my memories to be of working with Arnold, the direction of Ivan Reitman, the location shoot, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a finitely child at lunch. For instance, they got everyone pizza, but I avoided pizza. All I would eat was the pepperoni off the top. Then, the original Game Boy was new. That was the hot thing, and I was proficient. I was the youngest and some of the other children would bring me their Game Boys to pass certain levels on games because I could do it, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all little kid memories.

The Line

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember anything about it? Did you grasp the meaning?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word shocking meant, but I understood it was edgy and it got a big laugh. I was aware it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given special permission in this case because it was funny.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it came about, based on what I was told, was they hadn't finalized all the dialogue. A few scenes were established early on, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they refined it on set 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 didn't agree right away. She said, "Give me a moment, I'll decide tomorrow" and took some time. It was a tough call for her. She said she wasn't sure, but she thought it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and she was right.