I'm Known As the Iconic Line Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: A Look Back.

The action icon is best known as an iconic tough guy. But, in the midst of his blockbuster fame in the 1980s and 1990s, he also delivered several surprisingly great comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35th anniversary this December.

The Film and That Line

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger plays a undercover cop who poses as a kindergarten teacher to catch a killer. During the movie, the procedural element acts as a simple backdrop for Arnold to have charming scenes with children. Without a doubt the standout features a child named Joseph, who spontaneously rises and informs the former bodybuilder, “Males have a penis, females have a vagina.” Arnold responds dryly, “Thanks for the tip.”

The young actor was played by youth performer Miko Hughes. Beyond this role included a recurring role on Full House as the bully to the Olsen twins and the character of the child who returns in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with several projects in development. He also engages with fans at popular culture events. Recently discussed his recollections from the set of Kindergarten Cop over three decades on.

A Young Actor's Perspective

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

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

That's remarkable, I have no memory from being four. Do you retain any flashes 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 family, especially my mother would take me to auditions. Often it was an open call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all simply wait around, go into the room, be in there briefly, read a small part they wanted and that was it. My parents would feed me the lines and then, when I became literate, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

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

He was very kind. He was enjoyable. He was nice, which arguably stands to reason. It'd be weird if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a productive set. He was great to work with.

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

I was aware he was a huge celebrity because my family informed me, but I had barely seen his movies. I sensed the excitement — like, that's cool — but he didn't frighten me. He was merely entertaining and I was eager to interact with him when he had time. He was occupied, of course, but he'd occasionally joke around here and there, and we would hang off of his arms. He'd flex and we'd be holding on. He was incredibly giving. He gifted all the students in the classroom a yellow cassette player, which at the time was the hottest tech. This was the hottest tech out there, 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 eventually broke. I also was given a genuine metal whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all were gifted copies as well.

Do you remember your experience as being positive?

You know, it's amusing, that movie is such a landmark. It was a major production, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of collaborating with Schwarzenegger, the direction of Ivan Reitman, the location shoot, the production design, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. For instance, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the original Game Boy was new. That was the big craze, and I was quite skilled. I was the youngest and some of the bigger kids would ask for my help to pass certain levels on games because I knew how, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all childhood recollections.

The Infamous Moment

OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember the context? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word shocking meant, but I understood it was edgy and it made adults laugh. I knew it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given an exception in this case because it was comedic.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it originated, from what I understand, was they didn't have specific roles. A few scenes were part of the original screenplay, but once they had the kids together, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they worked on it while filming and, I suppose the filmmakers 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 answer immediately. She said, "I need to consider this, let me sleep on it" and took a day or two. She really wrestled with it. She said she wasn't sure, but she believed it will probably be one of the most memorable lines from the movie and history proved her correct.