I Was the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: An Interview.

The action icon is universally recognized as an action movie legend. However, at the height of his blockbuster fame in the 1980s and 1990s, he also headlined several genuinely hilarious comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its 35th anniversary this holiday season.

The Story and The Famous Scene

In the classic film, Schwarzenegger embodies a hardened detective who masquerades as a schoolteacher to catch a killer. During the story, the procedural element functions as a simple backdrop for the star to have charming scenes with children. Without a doubt the standout involves a child named Joseph, who unprompted rises and declares the former bodybuilder, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” The Terminator replies icily, “Thank you for that information.”

That iconic child was brought to life by child star Miko Hughes. In addition to this part featured a notable part on Full House as the bully to the famous sisters and the character of the resurrected boy in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He still works in film today, with a slate of movies in development. Additionally, he engages with fans at the con circuit. He recently discussed his recollections from the set of Kindergarten Cop after all this time.

A Young Actor's Perspective

Interviewer: First, 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.

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

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

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

My family, especially my mother would accompany me to auditions. Often it was an open call. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all simply wait around, be seen, be in there less than five minutes, deliver a quick line they wanted and that's all. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, when I became literate, that was some of the first material I was reading.

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

He was extremely gentle. He was enjoyable. He was pleasant, which arguably makes sense. It would have been odd if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that probably wouldn't make for a good work environment. He was great to work with.

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

I was aware he was a big action star because I was told, but I had not actually watched his movies. I felt the importance — like, that's cool — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was just fun and I just wanted to play with him when he had time. He was busy, obviously, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would dangle from his limbs. He'd tense up and we'd be hanging off. He was really, really generous. He gifted all the students in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was the hottest tech. This 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 was given a real silver whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.

Do you remember your experience as being positive?

You know, it's funny, that movie is such a landmark. It was such a big movie, and it was an incredible opportunity, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of collaborating with Schwarzenegger, the direction of Ivan Reitman, the location shoot, the production design, but my memories are of being a finitely child at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was brand new. That was the big craze, and I was proficient. I was the youngest and some of the older kids would ask for my help to beat difficult stages on games because I could do it, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

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 taboo meant, but I realized it got a reaction and it got a big laugh. I was aware it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given approval in this case because it was comedic.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it came about, from what I understand, was they didn't have specific roles. Certain bits of dialogue were established early on, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they developed it during shooting and, reportedly the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't answer immediately. She said, "I need to consider this, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a day or two. She really wrestled with it. She said she was hesitant, but she felt it will probably be one of the iconic quotes from the movie and history proved her correct.