I Am the Iconic Line Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: An Interview.

The action icon is rightfully celebrated as an iconic tough guy. But, at the height of his star power in the 1980s and 1990s, he also headlined several surprisingly great comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its 35-year mark this December.

The Story and The Famous Scene

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger plays a undercover cop who goes undercover as a schoolteacher to track down a criminal. For much of the story, the investigation plot acts as a simple backdrop for Schwarzenegger to share adorable moments with his young class. Without a doubt the standout features a child named Joseph, who unprompted announces and states the former bodybuilder, “Males have a penis, and girls get a vagina.” The Terminator responds dryly, “Thanks for the tip.”

That iconic child was played by former young actor Miko Hughes. Beyond this role encompassed a character arc on Full House as the bully to the child stars and the character of the resurrected boy in the screen translation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with multiple films on the horizon. Additionally, he frequently attends the con circuit. Not long ago shared his recollections from the filming of the classic 35 years later.

Behind the Scenes

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.

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

Yeah, to a degree. They're snapshots. They're like mental photographs.

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

My parents, primarily my mom would accompany 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, read a small part they wanted and then leave. My parents would feed me the lines and then, as soon as I could read, that was the initial content I was reading.

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

He was extremely gentle. He was fun. He was pleasant, which arguably stands to reason. It would have been odd if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that likely wouldn't create a positive atmosphere. He was a joy to have on set.

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

I understood he was a major movie star because that's what my parents told me, but I had never really seen his movies. I felt the importance — like, that's cool — but he wasn't scary to me. He was merely entertaining and I only wanted to hang out with him when he had time. He was occupied, of course, 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 gifted all the students in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was a major status symbol. That was the must-have gadget, that distinctive classic yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for years on that thing on that thing. It finally gave out. 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 experience as being positive?

You know, it's interesting, that movie became a phenomenon. It was a major production, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, working with [director] Ivan Reitman, traveling to Oregon, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the original Game Boy was just released. That was the big craze, and I was quite skilled. I was the youngest and some of the bigger kids would bring me their Game Boys to beat difficult stages on games because I could do it, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all childhood recollections.

That Famous Quote

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember anything about it? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word taboo meant, but I realized it got a reaction and it caused the crew to chuckle. I was aware it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given special permission in this case because it was comedic.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it was conceived, according to family lore, was they didn't have specific roles. Certain bits of dialogue were established early on, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they developed it during shooting and, reportedly someone in charge came to my mom and said, "We have an idea. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "Let me think about it, let me sleep on it" and took some time. It was a tough call for her. She said she had doubts, but she felt it would likely become one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and her instinct was correct.