Jeremy Renner takes blame for snow plow accident in first variety of interviews

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Screenshot courtesy of ABC

Jeremy Renner gave his first interview after suffering a life-threatening snowplow accident in January that left the Hawkeye actor with more than 30 broken bones.

In an interview with ABC News Diane Sawyer, Renner detailed exactly how the Jan. 1 incident happened, revealing that he was run over by his 14,330-pound Sno-Cat after trying to jump into the vehicle to save his nephew.

Renner said he and his 27-year-old nephew Alex were trying to pull a Ford Raptor out of the snow with his snowplow. As Alex untied the chain connecting the two vehicles after successfully pulling it out of the snow, Renner’s plow began to slip on the ice. Worried for the safety of his nephews, Renner took a foot out of the plow to turn back to Alex, neglecting to set the parking brake. It was then that he lost his footing and fell from the cabin of the vehicle.

I happened to be kind of the dummy standing on the dang trail for a bit, to see if my nephew was there. You shouldn’t be outside the vehicle when driving it, you know what I mean? It’s like driving a car with one foot out of the car, Renner said. But that’s what it was. And it’s my mistake, and I paid for it.

Fearing that the vehicle would roll back and pinch Alex with the truck, Renner attempted to jump into the Sno-Cat to disengage it, at which point it was crushed.

That’s where I screamed, by the way, when I went under the thing, Renner said. Not today, asshole! is what I shouted. Sorry for the language.

Renner said he remembered all the pain. I was awake every moment. It’s exactly what you imagine it would do, he says. It’s hard to imagine what it looks like, but when you look at the machine and look, I was on asphalt and ice. I would like to be on the snow. It was like someone took your breath away. Too much going on in the body to feel pain, that’s all. It’s as if your soul could suffer.

Remembering his injuries, Renner said he could see my eye with my other eye.

Alex was able to jump into the Raptor before the plow hit the car, sending him into a nearby snow bank. When Alex got out of the car and ran to Renner, he didn’t think he was alive.

It’s pretty terrifying to see the person you admire so much being like that, to see them like that, Alex said.

Alex ran to the nearest house in the area, where he spotted Rich Kovach standing in his garage with the door halfway down. Alex grabbed Kovach’s legs and shouted, You have to help me! Kovach and his partner, Barb Fletcher, came to the rescue.

Kovach and Fletcher recalled trying to keep the actor alive as they waited 21 minutes for paramedics to march through the snow. As can be heard during the 911 call, Renner was moaning loudly as he lay on the asphalt. It was the sound of someone dying, Fletcher said.

When I looked at his head, it seemed to be wide open and I could see white. I don’t know if it was his skull, maybe just my imagination, but that’s what I thought I saw. So I knew it was extremely serious, Kovach said. He had blood coming out of his ears, I’m sure, and then his eye, it looked like it had been pierced.

Fletcher added: At one point it just got a clammy feeling and it took on this grey-green color. I really feel like he died for a few seconds. Really.

Renner was eventually airlifted to a hospital in Reno, where his family met him. When they got there, Renner signed I’m sorry to them in sign language. I mean, I did this to them, he said. It’s my responsibility, I feel bad that my actions have caused so much pain.

Renner’s injuries were so severe that he wrote a farewell note to his family in hospital. I’m writing notes in my phone for a final word to my family, Renner said through tears. Don’t let me live on tubes on a machine, if my existence is going to be on drugs and painkillers, let me go now.

Sawyer recounted Renner’s injuries during the interview, saying: Eight broken ribs in 14 places. Right knee, broken right ankle, broken left leg tibia, broken left ankle, broken right collarbone, broken right shoulder. Face, eye socket, jaw, mandible broken. Collapsed lung. Pierced from the rib, your liver that looks terrifying.

Renner’s ribcage and eye socket were reconstructed with metal plates and screws, and his jaw was fixed with rubber bands and screws. A titanium rod was placed in his broken leg.

As Renner continues his recovery, he said he’s okay with not doing his own stunts anymore. I agree with a stuntman doing it at this point. I’m 52, okay, I’ve done enough, said Renner. I’m okay with doing more, right? But I don’t have an ego, like go ahead, I don’t care. I will be in my trailer.

But the painful memories of the accident still torment her mind. Last night I didn’t sleep for shit knowing I was going to have to talk about it today. I have no regrets. He’s a man I’m proud of, because I wouldn’t let that happen to my nephew. I change the narrative of being a victim, or making a mistake, or whatever. I refuse to be haunted by this fucking memory like this.

Renner will appear in person for the first time since the accident at the premiere of his upcoming Disney+ show Rennervations on April 11. He is also expected to take part in a Q&A after a screening of the series, which focuses on refurbishing different vehicles. According to the ABC News special, Renner told Sawyer that the next time fans see him on a red carpet, he wants to walk.

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