I Am the ‘Boys Have a Penis’ Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: A Look Back.

The Austrian Oak is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. However, during the peak of his blockbuster fame in the eighties and nineties, he also starred in several surprisingly great comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its 35-year mark this December.

The Role and The Famous Scene

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger plays a undercover cop who poses as a kindergarten teacher to track down a criminal. For much of the story, the procedural element functions as a loose framework for Schwarzenegger to film humorous scenes with children. Arguably the most famous features a student named Joseph, who unprompted announces and declares the former bodybuilder, “Males have a penis, girls have a vagina.” The Terminator replies icily, “I appreciate the insight.”

The boy behind the line was played by child star Miko Hughes. His career featured a recurring role on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the famous sisters and the haunting part of the child who returns in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with multiple films in development. Furthermore, he engages with fans at fan conventions. He recently recalled his recollections from the filming of the classic after all this time.

Behind the Scenes

Q: To begin, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

Miko Hughes: I think I was four. I was the youngest of all the kids on set.

Wow, I can't remember being four. Do you retain any flashes from that time?

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

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

My family, especially my mother would take me to auditions. Often it was a mass tryout. There'd be dozens of children and we'd all just have to wait, enter the casting office, be in there for a very short time, read a small part 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 enjoyable. He was pleasant, which arguably makes sense. It would be strange if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a productive set. He was a joy to have on set.

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

I knew he was a huge celebrity because my family informed me, but I had never really seen his movies. I felt the importance — he was a big deal — but he wasn't scary to me. He was simply playful and I just wanted to play with him when he had time. He was occupied, of course, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would hang off of his arms. He'd flex and we'd be hanging off. He was really, really generous. He purchased for each child in the classroom a personal stereo, which at the time was the hottest tech. This was the coolest device, that funky old yellow cassette player. I listened to the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for years on that thing on that thing. It eventually broke. I also have a authentic coach's whistle. He had the coach whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being fun?

You know, it's amusing, that movie became a phenomenon. It was such a big movie, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the direction of Ivan Reitman, traveling to Oregon, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a finitely child at lunch. For example, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was new. That was the big craze, and I was proficient. I was the youngest and some of the older kids would bring me their Game Boys to pass certain levels on games because I knew how, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all little kid memories.

The Infamous Moment

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 provocative meant, but I understood it was edgy and it made adults laugh. I was aware it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given special permission in this case because it was comedic.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it originated, according to family lore, was they were still developing characters. Certain bits of dialogue were written into the script, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it was more of a collaboration, but they refined it on set and, reportedly the filmmakers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't agree right away. She said, "Give me a moment, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a day or two. 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 she was right.