I'm Known As the Iconic Line Kid from Kindergarten Cop: A Look Back.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is universally recognized as an iconic tough guy. However, at the height of his blockbuster fame in the 1980s and 1990s, he also starred in several genuinely hilarious comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its 35-year mark this December.

The Role and That Line

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger plays a hardened detective who goes undercover as a elementary educator to track down a criminal. For much of the movie, the crime storyline serves as a loose framework for Schwarzenegger to film humorous scenes with children. The most unforgettable belongs to a child named Joseph, who unprompted stands up and declares the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” Arnold deadpans, “Thanks for the tip.”

The young actor was portrayed by youth performer Miko Hughes. Beyond this role featured a notable part on Full House playing the antagonist to the famous sisters and the haunting part of the resurrected boy in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with several projects in development. Furthermore, he engages with fans at fan conventions. Recently discussed his recollections from the filming of the classic 35 years later.

Behind the Scenes

Q: To begin, 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 remember anything from that time?

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

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

My mother, mainly would bring me to auditions. Often it was like a cattle call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all just have to wait, be seen, be in there for a very short time, do whatever little line they wanted and then leave. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, when I became literate, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

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

He was very kind. He was fun. 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 probably wouldn't make for a good work environment. He was fun to be around.

“It would have been odd if he was unpleasant 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 sensed the excitement — like, that's cool — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was simply playful and I only wanted to hang out with him when he wasn't busy. He was working hard, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would dangle from his limbs. He'd flex and we'd be dangling there. He was incredibly giving. He purchased for each child in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was like an iPhone. This was the hottest tech out there, that funky old yellow cassette player. I listened to the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for ages on that thing. It finally gave out. I also was given a authentic coach's whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being positive?

You know, it's funny, that movie became a phenomenon. It was a major production, and it was an incredible opportunity, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, working with [director] Ivan Reitman, visiting Astoria, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I avoided pizza. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was new. That was the coolest toy, 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 knew how, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

That Famous Quote

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember anything about it? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I probably didn't know what the word provocative meant, but I realized it got a reaction and it caused the crew to chuckle. I was aware it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given special permission in this case because it was comedic.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it came about, from what I understand, was they were still developing characters. Some character lines 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, presumably the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "We have an idea. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "I need to consider this, let me sleep on it" and took a short while. It was a tough call for her. She said she wasn't sure, but she believed it will probably be one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and she was right.