I Am the ‘Boys Have a Penis’ Kid from Kindergarten Cop: An Interview.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is rightfully celebrated as an action movie legend. But, at the height of his blockbuster fame in the eighties and nineties, he also starred in several genuinely hilarious comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35th anniversary this winter.

The Role and An Iconic Moment

In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger portrays a hardened detective who goes undercover as a kindergarten teacher to track down a criminal. During the movie, the investigation plot acts as a simple backdrop for Arnold to have charming moments with his young class. Without a doubt the standout features a little boy named Joseph, who unprompted stands up and informs the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, girls have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger replies icily, “I appreciate the insight.”

The young actor was portrayed by former young actor Miko Hughes. Beyond this role encompassed a notable part on Full House playing the antagonist to the Olsen twins and the character of the resurrected boy in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with a slate of movies listed on his IMDb. Additionally, he engages with fans at popular culture events. He recently recalled his experiences from the production after all this time.

A Young Actor's Perspective

Question: Starting off, how old were you when you filmed Kindergarten Cop?

Miko Hughes: My understanding is I was four. I was the most junior of all the kids on set.

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

Yeah, a little bit. They're brief images. They're like picture memories.

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

My mother, mainly would bring me to auditions. Frequently it was an open call. There'd be dozens of children and we'd all simply wait around, go into the room, be in there for a very short time, do whatever little line they wanted and then leave. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, once I learned to read, that was the initial content I was reading.

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

He was very kind. He was fun. He was nice, which I guess isn't too surprising. It would have been odd if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom, that likely wouldn't create a productive set. He was a joy to have on set.

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

I was aware he was a major movie star because I was told, but I had barely seen his movies. I sensed the excitement — it was exciting — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was just fun and I was eager to interact with him when he had time. 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 holding on. He was really, really generous. He bought every kid in the classroom a yellow cassette player, which at the time was the hottest tech. This was the must-have gadget, that distinctive classic 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 received a real silver whistle. He had the referee's whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.

Do you remember your days on set as being fun?

You know, it's interesting, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a huge film, and it was an incredible opportunity, and you would think, as an adult, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the direction of Ivan Reitman, visiting Astoria, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a finitely child at lunch. For instance, they got everyone pizza, but I didn't even like pizza. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was brand new. That was the coolest toy, and I was quite skilled. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would ask for my help 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 the context? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I probably didn't know what the word shocking meant, but I understood it was edgy and it got a big laugh. I knew it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given special permission in this case because it was funny.

“She really wrestled with it.”

How it was conceived, from what I understand, was they didn't have specific roles. Some character lines were written into the script, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they worked on it while filming and, I suppose it's either the director or producers 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, "I need to consider this, I need time" and took a day or two. She deliberated carefully. She said she wasn't sure, but she thought it could end up as one of the iconic quotes from the movie and history proved her correct.