I'm Known As the Iconic Line Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: A Candid Conversation.

The action icon is rightfully celebrated as an iconic tough guy. But, during the peak of his blockbuster fame in the 1980s and 1990s, he also starred in several genuinely hilarious comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its three-and-a-half decade milestone this winter.

The Film and The Famous Scene

In the classic film, Schwarzenegger plays a undercover cop who goes undercover as a schoolteacher to track down a criminal. Throughout the film's runtime, the procedural element acts as a basic structure for Schwarzenegger to film humorous moments with his young class. Arguably the most famous belongs to a student named Joseph, who spontaneously rises and declares the former bodybuilder, “Boys have a penis, and girls get a vagina.” The Terminator replies icily, “I appreciate the insight.”

That iconic child was portrayed by former young actor Miko Hughes. Beyond this role included a character arc on Full House playing the antagonist to the Olsen twins and the character of the resurrected boy in the screen translation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with several projects listed on his IMDb. Additionally, he engages with fans at fan conventions. Recently recalled his experiences from the filming of the classic after all this time.

Memories from the Set

Interviewer: First, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

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

Wow, I have no memory from being four. Do you remember anything from that time?

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

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My parents, primarily my mom would accompany me to auditions. Frequently it was a mass tryout. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all simply wait around, enter the casting office, be in there for a very short time, do whatever little line they wanted and that's all. My parents would feed me the lines and then, as soon as I could read, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

Do you have a specific memory of meeting Arnold? What was your feeling about him?

He was very kind. He was fun. He was nice, which I guess isn't too surprising. It'd be weird if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a good work environment. He was fun to be around.

“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 not actually watched his movies. I sensed the excitement — it was exciting — but he wasn't scary to me. He was just fun and I only wanted to hang out with him when he wasn't busy. He was busy, obviously, 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 holding on. 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. It was the coolest device, that distinctive classic yellow cassette player. I listened to the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for a long time on that thing. It wore out in time. I also have a real silver whistle. He had the coach whistle, and the kids all received one too as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being enjoyable?

You know, it's amusing, that movie is such a landmark. It was a huge film, and it was an incredible opportunity, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of collaborating with Schwarzenegger, the legendary director, the location shoot, the production design, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. For example, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the pepperoni off the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was brand new. That was the hot thing, and I was proficient. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would hand me their devices to get past hard parts on games because I was able to, and I was felt accomplished. So, it's all childhood recollections.

That Famous Quote

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

At the time, I probably didn't know what the word taboo meant, but I knew it was provocative and it made adults laugh. I was aware 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 didn't have specific roles. A few scenes were part of the original screenplay, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they refined it on set and, I suppose it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "We have an idea. 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'll decide tomorrow" and took a short while. It was a tough call for her. She said she wasn't sure, but she felt it could end up as one of the iconic quotes from the movie and history proved her correct.