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

The Austrian Oak is best known as an iconic tough guy. Yet, at the height of his cinematic dominance in the 1980s and 1990s, he also starred in several genuinely hilarious comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its 35-year mark this holiday season.

The Role and The Famous Scene

In the classic film, Schwarzenegger portrays a undercover cop who masquerades as a schoolteacher to locate a fugitive. During the film's runtime, the investigation plot functions as a simple backdrop for the star to have charming scenes with children. The most unforgettable involves a child named Joseph, who unprompted announces and informs the former bodybuilder, “Males have a penis, females have a vagina.” The Terminator deadpans, “Thank you for that information.”

The boy behind the line was portrayed by former young actor Miko Hughes. In addition to this part encompassed a recurring role on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the famous sisters and the haunting part of the resurrected boy in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with multiple films listed on his IMDb. He also is a regular on the con circuit. He recently recalled his memories from the production over three decades on.

A Young Actor's Perspective

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

Miko Hughes: I believe I was four. I was the smallest of all the kids on set.

Wow, I have no memory from being four. Do you retain any flashes from that time?

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

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

My family, especially my mother would take me to auditions. Sometimes it was an open call. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all just have to wait, go into the room, 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, when I became literate, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

Do you have any recollection of meeting Arnold? What was your feeling about him?

He was very kind. He was enjoyable. He was pleasant, which I guess isn't too surprising. It'd be weird if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that probably wouldn't make for a productive set. He was a joy to have on set.

“It'd be weird if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom.”

I knew he was a huge celebrity because I was told, 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 simply playful and I just wanted to play with him when he was available. He was busy, obviously, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd show his strength and we'd be dangling there. He was really, really generous. He purchased for each child in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was a major status symbol. It was the hottest tech out there, that iconic bright yellow cassette player. I listened to the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for years on that thing on that thing. It finally gave out. I also have a real silver whistle. He had the coach whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your experience as being fun?

You know, it's amusing, that movie is such a landmark. It was such a big movie, and it was an incredible opportunity, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of working with Arnold, the legendary director, visiting Astoria, the production design, but my memories are of being a selective diner 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 original Game Boy was just released. That was the big craze, and I was proficient. I was the smallest kid and some of the older kids would hand me their devices to beat difficult stages on games because I knew how, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all childhood recollections.

That Famous Quote

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember the context? Did you know what you were saying?

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

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it came about, according to family lore, was they were still developing characters. A few scenes were established early on, but once they had the kids together, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they worked on it while filming and, reportedly the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "We have an idea. We want Miko to say this. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't answer immediately. She said, "Let me think about it, I need time" and took a day or two. She deliberated carefully. She said she had doubts, but she thought it will probably be one of the iconic quotes from the movie and she was right.