I Was the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: An Interview.

The action icon is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. Yet, at the height of his star power in the eighties and nineties, he also delivered several critically acclaimed comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its 35th anniversary this holiday season.

The Film and The Famous Scene

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger portrays a hardened detective who goes undercover as a schoolteacher to track down a criminal. For much of the story, the procedural element serves as a loose framework for the star to film humorous interactions with kids. Arguably the most famous features a little boy named Joseph, who spontaneously rises and declares the stoic star, “It's boys who have a penis, females have a vagina.” The Terminator deadpans, “I appreciate the insight.”

The young actor was portrayed by youth performer Miko Hughes. His career featured a recurring role on Full House as the bully to the Olsen twins and the character of the resurrected boy in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with several projects on the horizon. Furthermore, he frequently attends the con circuit. Recently recalled his experiences from the production 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 smallest of all the kids on set.

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

Yeah, to a degree. They're flashes. They're like picture memories.

Do you recall how you got the part in Kindergarten Cop?

My parents, primarily my mom would take me to auditions. Frequently it was like a cattle call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all patiently queue, go into the room, be in there briefly, deliver a quick line they wanted and then leave. My parents would feed me the lines and then, once I learned to 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 very kind. He was enjoyable. He was nice, which I suppose makes sense. It would have been odd 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 mean to all the kids in the classroom.”

I knew he was a big action star because my family informed me, but I had never really seen his movies. I felt the importance — he was a big deal — but he didn't frighten me. He was just fun and I only wanted to hang out with him when he had time. He was busy, obviously, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd flex and we'd be holding on. He was exceptionally kind. He purchased for each child in the classroom a personal stereo, 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 a long time on that thing. It finally gave out. I also received a authentic coach's whistle. He had the coach whistle, and the kids all received one too as well.

Do you remember your experience as being enjoyable?

You know, it's funny, that movie is such a landmark. It was a huge film, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, as an adult, I would want my memories to be of working with Arnold, the legendary director, the location shoot, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. For example, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the original Game Boy was new. That was the hot thing, and I was pretty good at it. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would hand me their devices to beat difficult stages on games because I could do it, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all little kid memories.

That Famous Quote

OK, the penis and vagina line, do you remember how it happened? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word shocking meant, but I knew it was provocative and it got a big laugh. I understood it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given approval in this case because it was humorous.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it was conceived, from what I understand, was they were still developing characters. A few scenes were written into the script, but once they had the kids together, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they refined it on set and, I suppose the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "We're thinking. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't answer immediately. She said, "Let me think about it, I need time" and took a short while. It was a tough call for her. She said she wasn't sure, but she thought it will probably be one of the most memorable lines from the movie and she was right.