I Am the Iconic Line Kid from the Arnold Schwarzenegger Comedy: A Candid Conversation.

The Austrian Oak is best known as an iconic tough guy. Yet, at the height of his cinematic dominance in the 1980s and 1990s, he also starred in several surprisingly great comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which hits its 35-year mark this December.

The Role and An Iconic Moment

In the hit comedy, Schwarzenegger portrays a tough police officer who poses as a schoolteacher to locate a fugitive. During the film's runtime, the crime storyline acts as a loose framework for Arnold to film humorous moments with his young class. The most unforgettable features a child named Joseph, who spontaneously stands up and informs the actor, “Males have a penis, females have a vagina.” Schwarzenegger responds dryly, “Thanks for the tip.”

The young actor was portrayed by former young actor Miko Hughes. In addition to this part encompassed a character arc on Full House playing the antagonist to the child stars and the pivotal role of the youngster who comes back in the film version of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. He continues to act today, with several projects listed on his IMDb. Additionally, he engages with fans at popular culture events. He recently recalled his memories from the set of Kindergarten Cop 35 years later.

Memories from the Set

Interviewer: First, 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.

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 visual recollections.

Do you recall how you were cast in Kindergarten Cop?

My family, especially my mother would accompany me to auditions. Frequently it was an open call. There'd be dozens of children and we'd all patiently queue, enter the casting office, be in there briefly, deliver a quick line they wanted and then leave. My parents would help me learn the words and then, once I learned to read, that was the initial content I was reading.

Do you have any recollection of meeting Arnold? What was your take on him?

He was incredibly nice. He was fun. He was nice, which arguably stands to reason. It would be strange if he was mean to all the kids in the classroom, that surely wouldn't foster a productive set. He was great to work with.

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

I understood he was a big action star because that's what my parents told me, but I had not actually watched his movies. I knew the air around him — like, that's cool — but he didn't frighten me. He was merely entertaining and I just wanted to play with him when he was available. He was busy, obviously, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would cling to his muscles. He'd flex and we'd be dangling there. He was really, really generous. He gifted all the students in the classroom a Sony Walkman, which at the time was like an iPhone. That was the must-have gadget, that iconic bright yellow cassette player. I played the Power Rangers soundtrack and the Ninja Turtles soundtrack for years on that thing on that thing. It finally gave out. I also was given a authentic coach's whistle. He had the referee's whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.

Do you remember your experience as being enjoyable?

You know, it's funny, that movie was this cultural thing. It was such a big movie, and it was such an amazing experience, and you would think, looking back now, I would want my memories to be of working with Arnold, the legendary director, traveling to Oregon, the production design, but my memories are of being a really picky eater at lunch. For example, they got everyone pizza, but I avoided pizza. All I would eat was the toppings only. Then, the first-generation Game Boy was just released. That was the big craze, and I was pretty good at it. I was the smallest kid and some of the older kids would ask for my help to beat difficult stages on games because I was able to, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all little kid memories.

The Infamous Moment

OK, the infamous quote, do you remember the context? Did you grasp the meaning?

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 was aware it was kind of something I wasn't supposed to do, but I was given special permission in this case because it was funny.

“It was a difficult decision for her.”

How it was conceived, from what I understand, was they didn't have specific roles. Certain bits of dialogue were part of the original screenplay, but once they had the entire ensemble assembled, it was more of a collaboration, but they refined it on set and, presumably 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 didn't agree right away. She said, "Let me think about it, I need time" and took a day or two. She really wrestled with it. She said she wasn't sure, but she believed it will probably be one of the most memorable lines from the movie and her instinct was correct.