I Am the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: A Look Back.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. However, at the height of his cinematic dominance in the late 20th century, he also starred in several surprisingly great comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its three-and-a-half decade milestone this winter.

The Story and The Famous Scene

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger embodies a hardened detective who poses as a kindergarten teacher to catch a killer. Throughout the movie, the investigation plot serves as a simple backdrop for Arnold to have charming moments with his young class. Without a doubt the standout features a student named Joseph, who spontaneously rises and informs the actor, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger deadpans, “I appreciate the insight.”

The young actor was played by youth performer Miko Hughes. In addition to this part featured a recurring role on Full House playing the antagonist to the Olsen twins and the character of the child who returns in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with multiple films on the horizon. He also is a regular on popular culture events. Not long ago shared his experiences from the production 35 years later.

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 impressive, I don't recall being four. Do you retain any flashes from that time?

Yeah, to a degree. They're brief images. They're like visual recollections.

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

My mother, mainly would take me to auditions. Often it was like a cattle call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all patiently queue, enter the casting office, be in there less than five minutes, read a small part they wanted and that's all. My parents would help me learn the words and then, as soon as I could read, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

Do you have an impression of meeting Arnold? What was your feeling about him?

He was extremely gentle. He was enjoyable. He was good-natured, which arguably makes sense. It would be strange if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that probably wouldn't make for a productive set. He was great to work with.

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

I knew he was a huge celebrity because my family informed me, but I had barely seen his movies. I knew the air around him — it was exciting — but he wasn't scary to me. He was just fun and I just wanted to play with him when he had time. 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 holding on. He was incredibly giving. He purchased for each child in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was a major status symbol. 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 eventually broke. I also received a authentic coach's whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your time filming as being enjoyable?

You know, it's interesting, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a huge film, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, in retrospect, 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 really picky eater at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I avoided pizza. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the original Game Boy was just released. That was the hot thing, and I was quite skilled. I was the youngest and some of the older kids would bring me their Game Boys to pass certain levels on games because I was able to, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

The Line

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember the context? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word taboo meant, but I knew it was provocative and it caused the crew to chuckle. I knew it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given special permission in this case because it was comedic.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it was conceived, from what I understand, was they didn't have specific roles. Certain bits of dialogue were written into the script, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it was more of a collaboration, but they worked on it while filming 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, "Give me a moment, I need time" and took some time. It was a tough call for her. She said she had doubts, but she believed it could end up as one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and her instinct was correct.