I'm Known As the ‘Boys Have a Penis’ Kid from the Classic 1990 Film: A Look Back.
The action icon is rightfully celebrated as an Hollywood heavyweight. Yet, at the height of his blockbuster fame in the late 20th century, he also delivered several critically acclaimed comedies. The standout film is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35th anniversary this winter.
The Film and That Line
In the classic film, Schwarzenegger embodies a undercover cop who poses as a schoolteacher to locate a fugitive. During the movie, the crime storyline serves as a basic structure for the star to film humorous interactions with kids. The most unforgettable involves a little boy named Joseph, who out of nowhere rises and informs the actor, “It's boys who have a penis, girls have a vagina.” Arnold deadpans, “I appreciate the insight.”
The young actor was portrayed by youth performer Miko Hughes. His career encompassed a notable part on Full House playing the antagonist to the famous sisters and the character of the child who returns in the 1989 adaptation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with multiple films in development. Additionally, he frequently attends popular culture events. He recently recalled his experiences from the set of Kindergarten Cop 35 years later.
Behind the Scenes
Interviewer: First, 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 impressive, I can't remember being four. Do you retain any flashes from that time?
Yeah, somewhat. They're snapshots. They're like mental photographs.
Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?
My parents, primarily my mom would bring me to auditions. Frequently it was a mass tryout. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all patiently queue, go into the room, be in there briefly, read a small part they wanted and then leave. My parents would feed me the lines and then, once I learned to read, that was some of the first material I was reading.
Do you have an impression of meeting Arnold? What was your take on him?
He was incredibly nice. He was enjoyable. He was good-natured, which arguably stands to reason. It would have been odd if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a good work environment. He was great to work with.
“It would have been odd if he was unpleasant to all the kids in the classroom.”
I understood he was a huge celebrity because my family informed me, but I had barely seen his movies. I felt the importance — he was a big deal — but he didn't really intimidate me. He was just fun 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 cling to his muscles. He'd show his strength and we'd be holding on. He was exceptionally kind. He purchased for each child in the classroom a yellow cassette player, which at the time was the hottest tech. This was the coolest device, that iconic bright yellow cassette player. I played 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 real silver whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all received one too as well.
Do you remember your experience as being fun?
You know, it's funny, that movie became a phenomenon. It was such a big movie, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of the star himself, the legendary director, traveling to Oregon, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a finitely child at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I avoided pizza. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was just released. That was the coolest toy, and I was pretty good at it. I was the smallest kid and some of the bigger kids would bring me their Game Boys to get past hard parts on games because I was able to, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all childhood recollections.
The Line
OK, the infamous quote, do you remember anything about it? Did you grasp the meaning?
At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word taboo meant, but I understood it was edgy and it caused the crew to chuckle. I knew it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given special permission in this case because it was comedic.
“It was a difficult decision for her.”
How it came about, from what I understand, was they hadn't finalized all the dialogue. Some character lines were written into the script, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they worked on it while filming and, presumably 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 paused. 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 felt it could end up as one of the most memorable lines from the movie and history proved her correct.
