I'm Known As the Iconic Line Kid from Kindergarten Cop: A Candid Conversation.
The Austrian Oak is best known as an iconic tough guy. However, in the midst of his blockbuster fame in the eighties and nineties, he also delivered several genuinely hilarious comedies. Chief among them is Kindergarten Cop, which celebrates its 35th anniversary this holiday season.
The Role and An Iconic Moment
In the 1990 movie, Schwarzenegger portrays a undercover cop who goes undercover as a elementary educator to catch a killer. For much of the movie, the procedural element serves as a loose framework for the star to have charming interactions with kids. The most unforgettable features a little boy named Joseph, who spontaneously announces and declares the stoic star, “Males have a penis, and girls get a vagina.” Arnold deadpans, “Thanks for the tip.”
That iconic child was brought to life by child star Miko Hughes. Beyond this role included a character arc on Full House as the schoolyard menace to the child stars and the character of the child who returns in the film version of Stephen King’s Pet Sematary. Hughes remains active today, with a slate of movies in development. Additionally, he engages with fans at the con circuit. Recently discussed his memories from the production 35 years later.
Behind the Scenes
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 have no memory from being four. Do you retain any flashes from that time?
Yeah, to a degree. They're snapshots. They're like visual recollections.
Do you recall how you got the part in Kindergarten Cop?
My parents, primarily my mom would accompany me to auditions. Often it was an open call. There'd be 20, 30 kids 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 that was it. My parents would help me learn the words and then, once I learned to read, that was some of the first material I was reading.
Do you have any recollection of meeting Arnold? What was your impression of him?
He was extremely gentle. He was playful. He was good-natured, which I suppose makes sense. It'd be weird if he was mean 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 mean to all the kids in the classroom.”
I knew he was a major movie star because I was told, but I had not actually watched his movies. I knew the air around him — it was exciting — but he wasn't scary to me. He was merely entertaining and I was eager to interact with him when he wasn't busy. He was occupied, of course, but he'd kind of play with us here and there, and we would dangle from his limbs. He'd tense up and we'd be holding on. He was incredibly giving. He bought every kid in the classroom a yellow cassette player, which at the time was like an iPhone. That was the must-have gadget, that funky old yellow cassette player. I used to rock out to 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 authentic coach's whistle. He had the coach whistle, and the kids all got a whistle as well.
Do you remember your time filming as being positive?
You know, it's interesting, that movie is such a landmark. It was a huge film, and it was a wonderful time, and you would think, in retrospect, I would want my memories to be of working with Arnold, the legendary director, the location shoot, seeing the set, but my memories are of being a selective diner at lunch. Like, they got everyone pizza, but I wasn't a pizza fan. All I would eat was the pepperoni off the top. Then, the original Game Boy was just released. That was the big craze, and I was pretty good at it. I was the youngest and some of the other children would hand me their devices to get past hard parts on games because I knew how, and I was really proud of that. So, it's all childhood recollections.
The Line
OK, that specific dialogue, do you remember how it happened? Did you grasp the meaning?
At the time, I likely didn't understand what the word taboo meant, but I knew it was provocative and it got a big laugh. I was aware it was kind of something I wouldn't usually utter, but I was given approval in this case because it was humorous.
“She really wrestled with it.”
How it was conceived, based on what I was told, was they didn't have specific roles. Some character lines were established early on, but once they had the kids together, it wasn't necessarily improv, but they refined it on set and, presumably someone in charge came to my mom and said, "We're thinking. We want Miko to say this. Are you okay with this?" My mom paused. She said, "Let me think about it, let me sleep on it" and took a short while. She deliberated carefully. She said she was hesitant, but she thought it would likely become one of the most memorable lines from the movie and history proved her correct.
