I'm Known As the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: A Candid Conversation.

The Austrian Oak is universally recognized as an iconic tough guy. But, in the midst of his star power in the eighties and nineties, he also delivered several genuinely hilarious comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its three-and-a-half decade milestone this winter.

The Role and An Iconic Moment

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger plays a hardened detective who poses as a kindergarten teacher to locate a fugitive. For much of the movie, the crime storyline serves as a simple backdrop for Arnold to film humorous interactions with kids. The most unforgettable involves a child named Joseph, who unprompted rises and states the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, females have a vagina.” Arnold responds dryly, “I appreciate the insight.”

That iconic child was brought to life by youth performer Miko Hughes. Beyond this role featured a character arc on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the famous sisters and the character of the youngster who comes back in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with multiple films listed on his IMDb. Furthermore, he engages with fans at the con circuit. Not long ago discussed his recollections from the set of Kindergarten Cop over three decades on.

A Young Actor's Perspective

Question: Starting off, 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 can't remember being four. Do you remember anything from that time?

Yeah, somewhat. They're flashes. They're like visual recollections.

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

My parents, primarily my mom 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, 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 the initial content I was reading.

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

He was extremely gentle. He was fun. He was pleasant, which arguably isn't too surprising. It would have been odd if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a positive atmosphere. He was fun to be around.

“It would be strange if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom.”

I knew he was a huge celebrity because I was told, but I had never really seen his movies. I knew the air around him — like, that's cool — but he wasn't scary to me. He was just fun and I was eager to interact with him when he had time. He was working hard, but he'd sometimes engage here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd flex and we'd be hanging off. He was exceptionally kind. He purchased for each child in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was like an iPhone. It was the coolest device, that funky old 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 have a authentic coach's whistle. He had the referee's whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your time filming as being positive?

You know, it's interesting, that movie is such a landmark. It was a major production, 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, traveling to Oregon, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was new. That was the hot thing, and I was quite skilled. 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 little kid memories.

The Line

OK, the penis and vagina line, do you remember anything about it? Did you grasp the meaning?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word taboo meant, but I understood it was edgy and it caused the crew to chuckle. I knew it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given an exception in this case because it was funny.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it was conceived, from what I understand, was they were still developing characters. A few scenes were established early on, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they refined it on set and, reportedly it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "We're thinking. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't agree right away. She said, "I need to consider this, let me sleep on it" and took some time. It was a tough call for her. She said she had doubts, but she thought it will probably be one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and her instinct was correct.