I Am the ‘Penis and Vagina’ Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: A Look Back.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is universally recognized as an action movie legend. But, at the height of his star power in the 1980s and 1990s, he also headlined several genuinely hilarious comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its 35th anniversary this holiday season.

The Role and That Line

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger plays a hardened detective who poses as a kindergarten teacher to locate a fugitive. For much of the film's runtime, the procedural element functions as a basic structure for Schwarzenegger to share adorable interactions with kids. The most unforgettable involves a child named Joseph, who out of nowhere stands up and informs the actor, “It's boys who have a penis, girls have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger deadpans, “Thank you for that information.”

The young actor was played by youth performer Miko Hughes. His career encompassed a recurring role on Full House as the bully to the Olsen twins and the haunting part of the youngster who comes back in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with a slate of movies in development. He also engages with fans at popular culture events. Recently shared his experiences from the filming of the classic 35 years later.

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.

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

Yeah, somewhat. They're snapshots. They're like picture memories.

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My family, especially my mother would accompany me to auditions. Often it was a mass tryout. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all simply wait around, enter the casting office, be in there less than five minutes, read a small part they wanted and that was it. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, when I became literate, that was the initial content I was reading.

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

He was very kind. He was fun. He was nice, which I suppose makes sense. It'd be weird if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom, that probably wouldn't make for a productive set. He was fun to be around.

“It would be strange if he was a dick to all the kids in the classroom.”

I understood he was a major movie star because my family informed me, but I had not actually watched his movies. I knew the air around him — like, that's cool — but he wasn't scary to me. He was merely entertaining and I only wanted to hang out with him when he wasn't busy. He was working hard, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd tense up and we'd be hanging off. 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 must-have gadget, 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 wore out in time. I also have a genuine metal whistle. He had the referee's whistle, and the kids all received one too as well.

Do you remember your time filming as being fun?

You know, it's amusing, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a major production, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the direction of Ivan Reitman, the location shoot, 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 pepperoni off the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was just released. That was the hot thing, and I was quite skilled. I was the smallest kid and some of the older kids would hand me their devices to beat difficult stages on games because I was able to, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all childhood recollections.

The Infamous Moment

OK, the penis and vagina line, do you remember how it happened? Did you understand the words?

At the time, I probably didn't know what the word provocative meant, but I understood it was edgy and it caused the crew to chuckle. I was aware it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given an exception in this case because it was comedic.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it was conceived, based on what I was told, was they were still developing characters. Some character lines were written into the script, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it was more of a collaboration, but they worked on it while filming and, reportedly it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "There's a concept. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "I need to consider this, I need time" and took a short while. She deliberated carefully. She said she wasn't sure, but she thought it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and her instinct was correct.