A few months after being crushed by a 14,000-pound snowplow, Jeremy Renner reflects on the silver linings of the life-threatening accident that landed him in an intensive care unit with more than 30 broken bones.
In a recent interview with Jimmy Kimmel, Renner said he was “lucky in a lot of ways.” Although it broke about 35 bones — he said doctors were discovering more and more — the snowplow, which he described as a “giant metal cookie roller,” missed every vertebra and organ. He didn’t have brain swelling. And when Kimmel mentioned a “collapsed lung,” Renner joked, “Yeah, that’s fine. I have another one.”
“My eye popped out,” the actor said. “That’s strange.”
Jeremy Renner performs on Jimmy Kimmel Live!
The 52-year-old “Avengers” star beamed as she took the stage on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Earlier this week with a stick. He hugged the host and smiled as the audience gave him a standing ovation. He even danced a little.
“Was that a publicity stunt?” Kimmel joked.
“Absolutely,” said Renner, laughing.
“Well, if there was any question about who was the toughest avenger, that’s settled now, right?” Kimmel said, as Renner interjected “Scarlett Johansson.” “Forget Downey, Hemsworth, forget those guys, it’s you, you’re the guy.”
Renner has undergone some sort of reconstruction since the accident. His rib cages were remodeled with metal. His jaw is now held together with rubber bands and screws, and there are titanium rods in his legs. While the 52-year-old actor said it was “a very bad start to the new year,” he was thankful his family had it all with them.
“They were by my side the whole time,” Renner told Kimmel, noting that his family was present at the show.
Renner spent most of his brief interview with Kimmel joking and focusing on the positives — his family, friends, and other blessings that came from the accident. He said his normally busy schedule is now wide open and he may even take his smoking habit to the curb.
“The easiest way to quit smoking – because I almost killed myself I didn’t even think about smoking. It was easy as pie!” he joked.
At some point during the interview, Kimmel shared a recent video of Renner on a motorized scooter whining at Prince at Six Flags.
“You’re making fun of that injury, you really are,” laughed Kimmel.
“I promise you I’m in a lot of pain,” Renner replied.
Kimmel also shared a fake cameo video of Renner’s friend and “Avengers” co-star Paul Rudd.
“Hey Jerry, I heard you’re a little shaky, apparently you got into a fight with a snowblower?” Rudd begins, adding that he hopes Renner is better and that maybe the two would meet someday.
“Next time maybe just let the snow melt,” Rudd concluded.
Rennervations is now on Disney+
Renner’s new show, Rennervations, has also been a “driving force” in his recovery, the Deseret News previously reported. The show came to Disney+ on April 12.
“This show marked the milestone for me to get better and make sure all our hard work didn’t go to waste,” Renner told USA Today at the show’s Los Angeles premiere screening earlier this week. “There was no alternative. So for me it was easy. There was a place to go, a place to point and I had a lot of love.”
The four-part docuseries follows the actor reusing decommissioned government vehicles for communities in need – a longtime passion of Renner.
“I never thought that as a 52-year-old man I would still have dreams,” Renner told CNN at the premiere screening. “I feel like I kind of made them. But wow, it’s nice to make things come true for you. There are more miracles out there and I am very grateful to be here to continue finding that miracle.”