Jeremy Renner is wearing his scars like a badge of honor!
The Mayor of Kingstown star poses shirtless on the cover of the July/August issue of Men's Health magazine, a full year and a half after surviving a snowplow accident that left him on life support and with multiple massive injuries.
On the cover of the magazine, the 53-year-old actor's scars from the accident that left him in critical condition and having to endure multiple operations are visible on his back, shoulders and stomach. Inside the spread, a scar on his leg is visible as he wears workout shorts.
Jeremy Renner in Men's Health July/August 2024 cover.
"I never really had scars before, they were probably more emotional, spiritual scars, you know?" Renner says in a video for the accompanying photo spread. "And now there are some physical ones. But the physical ones aren't even from the accident, they're just because of the accident. All those are just reminders of the beautiful, beautiful, day that could have been a really bad day."
According to a redacted Washoe County Sheriff’s Office incident report obtained by ET, on New Year's Day 2023, Renner was towing his nephew, Alex's, vehicle after it got stuck in the snow. In the process, the snowplow began to move and Renner tried to prevent his nephew from being hurt. The trouble arose after the snowcat started "sliding sideways" and then "began to roll down the hill," spurring Renner to jump out of the machine. Renner was crushed by the machine in the process.
As a result, the Hawkeye star suffered massive injuries, including over 30 broken bones which included breaks to his ribs, knees, ankles, face, pelvis and hands. His other injuries included a collapsed lung, pierced liver and a contusion that left his left eye protruding out of his face. Over the course of the year since the accident, Renner went from barely walking, to moving around with the support of a cane, to being able to walk on his own and enduring daily rigorous workouts.
Renner reflects on the moment he says he died following the accident, and what it means for his body today.
Jeremy Renner in Men's Health July/August 2024 issue.
"I'm glad I'm here, and I'm going to keep feeding what you take with you: those shared experiences with those you love. It's eternal, and you take it with you," he tells Men's Health. "It's connected. There's no time, place, or space. It's magnificent. It's the mind's eye. Not your vision. You don't need vision -- you're dead. Vision is part of the stupid body thing. But the mind's eye you take with you. You see in your mind -- that's being dead. That’s what it’s like being dead."
He adds, "What you can visualize with your eyes closed. It's awesome. It's awesome! And by the way, everyone’s in it! It's what your imagination is. It was joy. It was exhilarating peace. Exhilarating peace. You're connected to everything all at once. All the love from the third-grade teacher you fell in love with to the everything all at once. All that's there. Continual. Perpetual. In perpetuity. It’s infinite. It’s magnificent."
Renner, who is the father of 11-year-old daughter Ava, says that another tough lesson to learn was accepting love from his family and fans -- and the way the accident changed how people look at him.
Jeremy Renner has documented his recovery process since the accident in 2023.
"I'm a tough guy to love, I think?" he admits. "And I think my family and people put all that aside. There's a lot of people that love me. And I had no idea. I had to learn how to receive all this love, and it's not easy. From people you don't even know, even. Why is this accident such a thing? But then I said, F**k, stop asking why. Just receive it. I was famous for having a bow and arrow; now I’m famous for overcoming something as a man."
In May, Renner spoke to ET about making his return to work on the set of Paramount's Mayor of Kingstown one year after his accident and how he was worried about performing "basic duties" on the set.
"It was something unlike I really felt before, I was in a place of self-doubt," the Avengers star said. "I don't know if I'm physically capable of -- 'cause you know, it's 12 hours, 14 hours on a set. Whether you're doing stunts or not, it's exhausting."
Renner said that the cast and crew were able to work with him and make accommodations that would suit him amid his return to work.
"At the end [of shooting the season], it was scheduling me more like a 14 year old, so like, you know, certain amount of hours, more breaks and that kind of stuff," he joked.
Renner's issue of Men's Health hits newsstands nationwide on July 2.
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