I Was the Iconic Line Kid from Kindergarten Cop: A Look Back.

The Austrian Oak is best known as an iconic tough guy. But, at the height 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 three-and-a-half decade milestone this winter.

The Role and That Line

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger embodies a undercover cop who goes undercover as a kindergarten teacher to track down a criminal. For much of the story, the procedural element acts as a simple backdrop for Arnold to have charming scenes with children. The most unforgettable involves a student named Joseph, who spontaneously stands up and informs the former bodybuilder, “Males have a penis, females have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger replies icily, “I appreciate the insight.”

The young actor was played by youth performer Miko Hughes. Beyond this role encompassed a recurring role on Full House playing the antagonist to the famous sisters and the character of the resurrected boy in the screen translation of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with multiple films listed on his IMDb. Additionally, he is a regular on fan conventions. Recently discussed his memories from the set of Kindergarten Cop after all this time.

Behind the Scenes

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

Miko Hughes: I think I was four. I was the smallest of all the kids on set.

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

Yeah, somewhat. They're snapshots. They're like mental photographs.

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My family, especially my mother would accompany me to auditions. Sometimes it was like a cattle call. There'd be 20, 30 kids and we'd all just have to wait, be seen, be in there for a very short time, do whatever little line they wanted and that's all. My parents would coach me on the dialogue and then, when I became literate, that was probably the first stuff I was reading.

Do you have an impression of meeting Arnold? What was your impression of him?

He was very kind. He was enjoyable. He was nice, which I suppose isn't too surprising. It'd be weird 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 knew he was a major movie star because my family informed me, but I had never really seen his movies. I knew the air around him — he was a big deal — but he wasn't scary to me. He was simply playful and I only wanted to hang out with him when he wasn't busy. He was occupied, of course, but he'd sometimes engage here and there, and we would hang off of his arms. He'd show his strength 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 like an iPhone. This was the must-have gadget, that distinctive classic yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for years on that thing on that thing. It wore out in time. I also received a real silver whistle. He had the teacher's whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.

Do you remember your experience as being fun?

You know, it's funny, that movie was this cultural thing. It was a huge film, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of collaborating with Schwarzenegger, the legendary director, the location shoot, being on a professional set, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. For example, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the meat from the top. Then, the Nintendo Game Boy was new. That was the big craze, and I was proficient. I was the smallest kid and some of the older kids would hand me their devices to pass certain levels on games because I knew how, and I was quite pleased with myself. So, it's all little kid memories.

That Famous Quote

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember the context? Did you know what you were saying?

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 understood it was kind of something I shouldn't normally say, but I was given special permission in this case because it was funny.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it was conceived, based on what I was told, was they were still developing characters. Certain bits of dialogue were established early on, but once they had the whole cast on the set, it wasn't pure improvisation, but they refined it on set and, presumably it's either the director or producers came to my mom and said, "We're thinking. We want Miko to deliver this dialogue. Are you okay with this?" My mom didn't answer immediately. She said, "Give me a moment, let me sleep on it" and took some time. She deliberated carefully. She said she was hesitant, but she believed it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and her instinct was correct.