I'm Known As the Iconic Line Kid from Kindergarten Cop: A Candid Conversation.

The action icon is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. Yet, in the midst of his blockbuster fame in the late 20th century, he also starred in several critically acclaimed comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its 35-year mark this December.

The Film and The Famous Scene

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger portrays a hardened detective who masquerades as a elementary educator to track down a criminal. For much of the movie, the investigation plot acts as a simple backdrop for Arnold to film humorous moments with his young class. Arguably the most famous features a child named Joseph, who spontaneously stands up and states the former bodybuilder, “Boys have a penis, girls have a vagina.” Arnold responds dryly, “I appreciate the insight.”

The boy behind the line was played by youth performer Miko Hughes. His career included a recurring role on Full House playing the antagonist to the famous sisters and the character of the resurrected boy in the film version 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. Not long ago shared his experiences from the set of Kindergarten Cop over three decades on.

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 youngest of all the kids on set.

That's remarkable, I don't recall being four. Do you remember anything from that time?

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

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

My mother, mainly would take me to auditions. Sometimes it was an open call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all just have to wait, enter the casting office, be in there for a very short time, do whatever little line they wanted and that was it. My parents would feed me the lines and then, as soon as I could read, that was some of the first material 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 good-natured, which arguably isn't too surprising. It'd be weird if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a good work environment. He was fun to be around.

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

I knew he was a huge celebrity because my family informed me, but I had never really seen his movies. I knew the air around him — like, that's cool — 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 show his strength and we'd be dangling there. He was really, really generous. He bought every kid in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was a major status symbol. It was the must-have gadget, that distinctive classic 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 have a authentic coach's whistle. He had the referee's whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being fun?

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 the star himself, 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 avoided pizza. All I would eat was the pepperoni off the top. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was just released. That was the coolest toy, and I was pretty good at it. I was the youngest and some of the bigger kids would bring me their Game Boys to pass certain levels on games because I knew how, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all little kid memories.

The Infamous Moment

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 provocative meant, but I understood it was edgy and it caused the crew to chuckle. 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 originated, according to family lore, was they were still developing characters. Certain bits of dialogue 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, reportedly it's either the director or producers 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, "Let me think about it, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a day or two. It was a tough call for her. She said she wasn't sure, but she felt it could end up as one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and she was right.