I Was the ‘Boys Have a Penis’ Kid from Kindergarten Cop: An Interview.

The Austrian Oak is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. Yet, at the height of his cinematic dominance in the 1980s and 1990s, he also headlined several critically acclaimed comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35-year mark this holiday season.

The Role and The Famous Scene

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger portrays a hardened detective who masquerades as a elementary educator to catch a killer. Throughout the story, the procedural element serves as a simple backdrop for Arnold to film humorous moments with his young class. Without a doubt the standout features a child named Joseph, who unprompted announces and informs the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, and girls get a vagina.” Schwarzenegger deadpans, “I appreciate the insight.”

The boy behind the line was played by child star Miko Hughes. His career encompassed a notable part on Full House as the bully 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 multiple films in development. Additionally, he engages with fans at the con circuit. Recently recalled his memories from the filming of the classic after all this time.

Memories from the Set

Q: To begin, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

Miko Hughes: I believe I was four. I was the youngest of all the kids on set.

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

Yeah, a little bit. They're flashes. They're like picture memories.

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My parents, primarily my mom would accompany me to auditions. Often it was an open call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all simply wait around, enter the casting office, be in there less than five minutes, do whatever little line they wanted and that was it. My parents would help me learn the words and then, once I learned to read, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

Do you have an impression of meeting Arnold? What was your take on him?

He was extremely gentle. He was playful. He was pleasant, which I suppose makes sense. It would be strange if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a productive set. He was fun to be around.

“It'd be weird if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom.”

I was aware he was a major movie star because I was told, but I had barely seen his movies. I felt the importance — like, that's cool — but he didn't frighten me. He was merely entertaining and I was eager to interact with him when he wasn't busy. He was busy, obviously, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would hang off of his arms. He'd show his strength and we'd be dangling there. He was exceptionally kind. He bought every kid in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was the hottest tech. This was the must-have gadget, that iconic bright yellow cassette player. I used to rock out 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 teacher'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 interesting, that movie was this cultural thing. It was such a big movie, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, as an adult, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the direction of Ivan Reitman, the location shoot, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. For instance, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the original Game Boy was brand new. That was the coolest toy, and I was proficient. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would bring me their Game Boys to get past hard parts on games because I was able to, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

The Infamous Moment

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember the context? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word provocative meant, but I understood it was edgy and it got a big laugh. I knew it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given special permission in this case because it was humorous.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it came about, from what I understand, 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 refined it on set and, presumably it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to say this. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "I need to consider this, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a short while. She deliberated carefully. She said she was hesitant, but she believed it could end up as one of the most memorable lines from the movie and she was right.