I'm Known As the ‘Boys Have a Penis’ Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: A Candid Conversation.

The Austrian Oak is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. However, in the midst of his blockbuster fame in the eighties and nineties, he also starred in several genuinely hilarious comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its 35-year mark this December.

The Story and That Line

In the classic film, Schwarzenegger embodies a hardened detective who poses as a elementary educator to locate a fugitive. Throughout the story, the investigation plot serves as a simple backdrop for Schwarzenegger to have charming scenes with children. The most unforgettable involves a child named Joseph, who out of nowhere stands up and declares the former bodybuilder, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” Arnold deadpans, “Thank you for that information.”

The boy behind the line was portrayed by former young actor Miko Hughes. His career included a notable part on Full House playing the antagonist to the Olsen twins and the pivotal role of the child who returns in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with a slate of movies listed on his IMDb. Additionally, he frequently attends fan conventions. Not long ago shared his experiences from the production after all this time.

Memories from the Set

Interviewer: First, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

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

That's remarkable, I have no memory from being four. Do you have any memories from that time?

Yeah, somewhat. They're snapshots. They're like visual recollections.

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My mother, mainly would bring me to auditions. Often 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 less than five minutes, read a small part they wanted and that was it. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, once I learned to read, 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 very kind. He was enjoyable. He was good-natured, which I guess isn't too surprising. It would be strange if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom, that likely wouldn't create a positive atmosphere. He was a joy to have on set.

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

I understood he was a huge celebrity because my family informed me, but I had not actually watched his movies. I knew the air around him — he was a big deal — but he wasn't scary to me. He was just fun and I only wanted to hang out with him when he had time. He was working hard, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd tense up and we'd be hanging off. He was really, really generous. He purchased for each child in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was the hottest tech. It was the hottest tech out there, that iconic bright yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for a long time on that thing. It wore out in time. I also was given a authentic coach's whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all received one too as well.

Do you remember your time filming as being enjoyable?

You know, it's funny, that movie became a phenomenon. It was a major production, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, as an adult, 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 avoided pizza. All I would eat was the pepperoni off the top. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was just released. That was the hot thing, and I was quite skilled. I was the youngest and some of the bigger kids would bring me their Game Boys to beat difficult stages on games because I could do it, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

That Famous Quote

OK, the penis and vagina line, do you remember anything about it? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I probably didn't know what the word shocking meant, but I knew it was provocative and it made adults laugh. I understood it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given an exception in this case because it was comedic.

“My mom thought hard about it.”

How it came about, according to family lore, was they didn't have specific roles. Certain bits of dialogue were written into the script, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they refined it on set and, I suppose 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, "Let me think about it, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a short while. She deliberated carefully. She said she wasn't sure, but she felt it would likely become one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and she was right.