I Am the Iconic Line Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: A Candid Conversation.

The Austrian Oak is best known as an Hollywood heavyweight. But, at the height of his blockbuster fame in the 1980s and 1990s, he also headlined several critically acclaimed comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its three-and-a-half decade milestone this winter.

The Story and That Line

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger plays a tough police officer who masquerades as a schoolteacher to catch a killer. Throughout the movie, the procedural element functions as a simple backdrop for Schwarzenegger to have charming scenes with children. Without a doubt the standout involves a little boy named Joseph, who out of nowhere stands up and declares the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, girls have a vagina.” The Terminator responds dryly, “Thank you for that information.”

The young actor was played by child star Miko Hughes. In addition to this part included a notable part on Full House playing the antagonist to the child stars and the pivotal role of the youngster who comes back in the film version of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with a slate of movies in development. Additionally, he is a regular on fan conventions. He recently shared his experiences from the production 35 years later.

Behind the Scenes

Q: To begin, 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 have no memory from being four. Do you remember anything from that time?

Yeah, somewhat. They're flashes. They're like mental photographs.

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

My family, especially my mother would take me to auditions. Frequently it was a mass tryout. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all patiently queue, enter the casting office, be in there for a very short time, do whatever little line they wanted and then leave. My parents would feed me the lines and then, when I became literate, that was some of the first material I was reading.

Do you have a specific memory of meeting Arnold? What was your take on him?

He was incredibly nice. He was fun. He was pleasant, which arguably stands to reason. It would have been odd if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that likely wouldn't create a good work environment. He was a joy to have on set.

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

I understood he was a huge celebrity 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 didn't frighten me. He was simply playful and I only wanted to hang out with him when he was available. 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 hanging off. He was exceptionally kind. He bought every kid in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was like an iPhone. This was the must-have gadget, that funky old yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for a long time on that thing. It wore out in time. I also received 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 interesting, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a major production, and it was an incredible opportunity, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of collaborating with Schwarzenegger, the direction of Ivan Reitman, the location shoot, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. For instance, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was brand new. That was the big craze, and I was pretty good at it. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would bring me their Game Boys to pass certain levels on games because I knew how, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all little kid memories.

That Famous Quote

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember how it happened? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word taboo meant, but I knew it was provocative and it made adults laugh. I knew it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given approval in this case because it was funny.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it was conceived, according to family lore, was they hadn't finalized all the dialogue. A few scenes were written into the script, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they worked on it while filming and, reportedly the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't answer immediately. She said, "Let me think about it, let me sleep on it" and took a day or two. She really wrestled with it. She said she wasn't sure, but she thought it would likely become one of the unforgettable moments from the movie and history proved her correct.