I'm Known As the ‘Boys Have a Penis’ Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: A Candid Conversation.

The action icon is best known as an iconic tough guy. Yet, at the height of his cinematic dominance in the late 20th century, he also headlined several genuinely hilarious comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35th anniversary this holiday season.

The Film and The Famous Scene

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger plays a tough police officer who poses as a kindergarten teacher to locate a fugitive. Throughout the story, the procedural element acts as a basic structure for the star to film humorous moments with his young class. The most unforgettable involves a little boy named Joseph, who out of nowhere rises and states the actor, “Males have a penis, girls have a vagina.” The Terminator deadpans, “Thank you for that information.”

The young actor was played by former young actor Miko Hughes. In addition to this part featured a recurring role on Full House playing the antagonist to the famous sisters and the character of the youngster who comes back in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with several projects listed on his IMDb. Additionally, he is a regular on fan conventions. He recently shared his recollections from the production over three decades on.

Memories from the Set

Question: Starting off, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

Miko Hughes: My understanding is I was four. I was the youngest of all the kids on set.

Wow, I can't remember being four. Do you retain any flashes from that time?

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

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

My mother, mainly would take me to auditions. Often it was like a cattle call. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all simply wait around, go into the room, be in there less than five minutes, do whatever little line they wanted and that's all. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, when I became literate, that was the initial content 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 pleasant, which I suppose stands to reason. It'd be weird if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that likely wouldn't create a productive set. He was great to work with.

“It would be strange if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom.”

I knew he was a major movie star because that's what my parents told me, but I had never really seen his movies. I knew the air around him — he was a big deal — 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 busy, obviously, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd show his strength and we'd be holding on. He was really, really generous. He bought every kid in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was like an iPhone. It was the hottest tech out there, that distinctive classic 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 wore out in time. I also received a genuine metal 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 positive?

You know, it's interesting, that movie is such a landmark. It was a huge film, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the direction of Ivan Reitman, visiting Astoria, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. Like, 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 big craze, and I was pretty good at it. I was the youngest and some of the bigger kids would ask for my help to get past hard parts on games because I knew how, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

The Line

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember how it happened? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word provocative meant, but I understood it was edgy and it made adults laugh. I knew it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given special permission in this case because it was humorous.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it was conceived, according to family lore, was they were still developing characters. Certain bits of dialogue were established early on, but once they had the kids together, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they developed it during shooting and, presumably it's either the director or producers 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 was hesitant, but she felt it could end up as one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and history proved her correct.