Jeremy Renner Says Recovery Was ‘One-Way Road’ After Near-Fatal Snowplow Accident

Jeremy Renner attends Level 8 Grand Opening Party At Moxy Downtown LA in Los Angeles, Calif., on Sept. 13, 2023. (Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images for Level 8)

Actor Jeremy Renner is speaking out about his recovery after being crushed by a snowplow in Nevada last year on New Year’s Day.

“I am just so blessed that I had so many things to live for, brother,” the 52-year-old Marvel “Avengers” star told Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen on Sunday evening during a New Year’s Eve broadcast. “I have a giant family. I have a 10-year-old daughter. I would have disappointed and really messed up a lot of people’s lives if I would have passed.”

Mr. Renner, who was interviewed via video from Reno, Nevada, admitted that he was “pretty stubborn” and that there was no other option than to recover from his traumatic injuries that left him hospitalized for weeks.

“There was a lot for me to fight for, and recovery was just a one-way road in my mind,” the actor said. “My recovery became a relief for me because I knew I could give relief to my family, my daughter, and all those that I really affected.

“And my poor nephew, who was there with me on that day, I gave him images that he can never unsee, but I know that my healing would be healing for him,” he continued.

“With that, I’d never thought about my own physical ailments, my own pain, or my own anguish. I had so many things to fight for, so the one-way road to recovery was my mental sort of attitude, and that attitude was always to get better.

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“There’s no option other than that. And I still work at every part, every day, and thank God that I have a lot to fight for.”

On Tuesday, Jan. 2, Mr. Renner appeared on the Ellen K Morning Show on KOST 104.5 FM. He explained how music played a “cathartic” role in his healing over the past year and discussed his new EP “Love and Titanium,” which drops later this month.

“It’s a musical diary entry, journal entry, and kind of healing and cathartic for me, and I’m sharing it because I think a lot of people were on this journey with me and this recovery,” he told the show’s host.

A day earlier, on New Year’s Day, Mr. Renner marked the anniversary of his accident with the video debut of his new single “Wait,” which can be found on his YouTube channel.

He dedicated the song to his daughter, Ava Renner, who appears with her dad in the video.

“You are the best part of me,” he says in the opening dedication. “You’ve become tremendously inspired at such a young age. Your grace, your thoughtfulness, and your constitution make me so very proud.”

On the same day, the two-time Academy Award nominee posted a photo of himself and Ava with her arms wrapped around him. The young girl was wearing a “Happy New Year 2024” tiara.

“Reason number one for my recovery is her,” he wrote in the caption on Instagram. “I asked her to ‘wait for me’ when I first saw her on January 14 as I arrived home. As I got better, she got better, less afraid. There is simply no better motivator to recover than to heal your family and friends... With gratitude always, thank you for all your love and support this last full year. I needed every ounce of goodwill and prayer. Hope you enjoy the video we made from the ‘Love and Titanium’ EP set to release Jan. 19.”

On Saturday, Mr. Renner also hinted at his return to acting when he reposted a photo of him and British actress Emma Laird, who co-stars with him on the popular TV series “Mayor of Kingston.”

“Back with my [favorite] guy next week,” Ms. Laird, 25, wrote on her Instagram story.

Mr. Renner shared the photo with a caption that read, “It’s happening,”

The Accident

On Jan. 1, 2022, Mr. Renner suffered traumatic injuries while trying to help his nephew get his stuck vehicle out of the three feet of snow that had fallen the night before near his home in Reno, Nevada.

After getting the vehicle unstuck, Mr. Renner got out of the snowplow, known as a PistenBully, to speak with his nephew. A PistenBully runs on a track and weighs more than 14,300 pounds.

“At this point, it is observed that the PistenBully started to roll. In an effort to stop the rolling Pistenbully, Mr. Renner attempts to get back into the driver seat of the PistenBully,” Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam said during a press conference two days after the accident. “Based on our investigation, it’s at this point that Mr. Renner is run over by the PistenBully.”

A neighbor called 911, and first responders arrived on the scene just before 9:00 a.m.

Mr. Renner was then airlifted to a local hospital, where he was placed in the ICU and treated for blunt chest trauma and orthopedic injuries, including more than 30 broken bones.

On Friday, the actor shared a photo on Instagram of himself sitting in a Rennervation Foundation fire truck, noting his visit to the first responders and hospital staff that treated him last year.

“Rollin [sic] through Reno with joy, blessings, and [pizza emoji]!!!! Stopped by to see kids/superheroes, first responders, and doctors, nurses, and staff at Renown Hospital. Paying my respects and celebrating love, life, and the blessings it brings to us all. Thank you and this community for keeping me here. I’m forever in your debt with gratitude,” Mr. Renner wrote.