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

The action icon is universally recognized as an Hollywood heavyweight. However, during the peak of his cinematic dominance in the late 20th century, he also headlined several surprisingly great comedies. A prime example is Kindergarten Cop, which marks its 35-year mark this holiday season.

The Role and The Famous Scene

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger portrays a tough police officer who masquerades as a elementary educator to catch a killer. Throughout the film's runtime, the procedural element acts as a loose framework for the star to have charming interactions with kids. Arguably the most famous involves a student named Joseph, who out of nowhere rises and states the stoic star, “Boys have a penis, girls have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger deadpans, “I appreciate the insight.”

The boy behind the line was brought to life by child star Miko Hughes. His career encompassed a recurring role on Full House as the bully to the famous sisters and the character of the resurrected boy in the screen translation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He still works in film today, with multiple films on the horizon. He also engages with fans at fan conventions. He recently recalled his recollections from the filming of the classic over three decades on.

Memories from the Set

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 remarkable, I have no memory from being four. Do you remember anything from that time?

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

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

My parents, primarily my mom would accompany me to auditions. Sometimes it was an open call. There'd be a room full of young actors and we'd all patiently queue, enter the casting office, be in there briefly, read a small part they wanted and then leave. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, when I became literate, that was some of the first material I was reading.

Do you have any recollection of meeting Arnold? What was your feeling about him?

He was very kind. He was enjoyable. He was pleasant, which arguably makes sense. 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 great to work with.

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

I knew he was a big action star because that's what my parents told me, but I had barely seen his movies. I felt the importance — it was exciting — but he wasn't scary to me. He was just fun 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 hang off of his arms. He'd flex and we'd be dangling there. He was exceptionally kind. He gifted all the students in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was a major status symbol. That was the coolest device, that iconic bright yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for ages on that thing. It eventually broke. 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 time filming as being fun?

You know, it's amusing, that movie became a phenomenon. It was such a big movie, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, as an adult, I would want my memories to be of working with Arnold, the legendary director, the location shoot, the production design, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I avoided pizza. All I would eat was the pepperoni off the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was just released. That was the coolest toy, and I was quite skilled. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would hand me their devices to beat difficult stages on games because I could do it, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all youthful anecdotes.

The Line

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember anything about it? Did you know what you were saying?

At the time, I wasn't fully aware of what the word shocking meant, but I knew it was provocative and it got a big laugh. I understood it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given an exception in this case because it was funny.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it originated, according to family lore, was they were still developing characters. Certain bits of dialogue were established early on, but once they had the kids together, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they developed it during shooting and, reportedly someone in charge came to my mom and said, "We're thinking. We want Miko to have this line. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "I need to consider this, I'll decide tomorrow" and took a day or two. She deliberated carefully. She said she had doubts, but she felt it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and her instinct was correct.