When Edward Furlong was 13, he was one of thousands of unknowns to audition for the role of young John Conner in “Terminator 2: Judgement Day.” “[I was] picked up from nowhere, just auditioned for it and before I knew it, I was doing it,” Furlong recalled in an interview with the Daily Mail. Going from zero to stardom at such a young age was a lot to handle; left without adult supervision, booze and marijuana soon entered the picture, followed by cocaine and heroin. “I was never a normal teenager. I had a very un-normal life. I was almost destined for [drug addiction],” he mused, recalling that “when I was high, I had camaraderie with other people.”
As he grew into adulthood and acting roles grew fewer, Furlong’s drug abuse escalated. In 2012, a judge banned him from spending time alone with his son when the child, then six, tested positive for cocaine. According to People, in January 2013, he was arrested on charges of domestic violence; a few months later, he was arrested again for violating a protective order that his that his ex-wife had obtained in 2010. He was subsequently sentenced to six months in jail for violating that protective order (via USA Today).
Furlong told Daily Mail in 2022 that at that point he’d been sober for four years. One unfortunate side effect of his addiction, he revealed, was that many of his teeth had rotted due to prolonged meth use.
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If you or anyone you know needs help with addiction issues, help is available. Visit the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration website or contact SAMHSA’s National Helpline at 1-800-662-HELP (4357).
If you or someone you know is dealing with domestic abuse, you can call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−7233. You can also find more information, resources, and support at their website.
