Edward Furlong Looks Back on Terminator 2 and the Difficult Years That Followed

Edward Furlong was only 13 when he was cast as John Connor in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The 1991 blockbuster turned him into a star almost overnight and placed him at the center of one of Hollywood’s biggest movie franchises.

Now, as James Cameron’s action classic marks its 35th anniversary, Furlong is looking back on the experience that changed his life — and the difficult years that came afterward.

Furlong, now 49, says one of the biggest advantages of making his first film was working with Cameron.

“I was spoiled rotten by being able to work with Jim Cameron as like the first director that I worked with,” Furlong told PEOPLE. “He really knows what he’s doing. It’s like you feel safe with Jim Cameron — you know it’s going to be good.”

Furlong also remembers Arnold Schwarzenegger, who played the iconic Terminator, as a major influence on the set. Despite being one of the biggest stars in the world, Schwarzenegger impressed the young actor with his attitude and professionalism.

“He just was the definition of professional,” Furlong said. “I never, ever saw Arnold complain. He always kind of lifted the mood on set.”

Linda Hamilton, who returned as Sarah Connor, also played an important role in Furlong’s development as an actor.

“I think she made me that much better being able to act alongside her,” he said. “I learned so much from all of them.”

Fame Came With a Heavy Price

After Terminator 2, Furlong continued acting, appearing in films including Pet Sematary II in 1992 and American History X in 1998 alongside Edward Norton.

But becoming famous at such a young age brought its own challenges.

“Growing up in the spotlight is really hard,” Furlong said. “It’s tough enough as an adult to be able to navigate just being a human being and making mistakes... when you got a spotlight on you, it’s tough.”

As he grew older, Furlong struggled with drug and alcohol abuse. His personal problems also included arrests and domestic violence charges during the 2010s.

In 2016, he was arrested for being under the influence of an illicit substance and later entered a recovery program. In February 2025, he revealed that he had reached seven years of sobriety.

His struggles also affected his career. Furlong has said that his drug use ultimately cost him the chance to return as John Connor in Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.

Rather than hide from his past, however, Furlong now says he has learned to accept it.

“I made mistakes down the road, a lot of them being drugs and parties and all that stuff,” he said. “But, I don’t know... I kind of accepted it at this point as something that has made me who I am today.”

Still Grateful for Acting

Despite the difficult chapters in his life, Furlong remains grateful for the career he began as a teenager.

He says he quickly discovered that acting gave him an outlet and became something deeply meaningful to him.

“I just found acting very therapeutic,” Furlong said. “I just really gravitated towards it. I’m blessed to have been able to, through most of my life, been able to do something that I really love doing.”

Furlong recently reunited with Hamilton, Michael Biehn and Robert Patrick at a Terminator 2 convention in August, bringing several members of the original cast together once again.

More than 30 years after the movie's release, Furlong is still amazed by its lasting popularity.

“I knew the movie was gonna be big... but, like, I had no idea that I’d still be talking to PEOPLE, and I’m, you know, almost 50 years old, and I’m still talking about Terminator 2,” he said.

For Furlong, Terminator 2 is more than a hit movie from the past. It is the film that introduced him to acting, gave him an unforgettable childhood experience and continues to connect him with audiences decades later.

The movie may be 35 years old, but John Connor — and the young actor who brought him to life — remain firmly part of Hollywood’s pop-culture history.