Jeremy Renner makes 1st red carpet appearance since snowplow accident
Jeremy Renner is back.
The 52-year-old made a big return to the red carpet on Tuesday — his first since his near-fatal snowplow accident on New Year's Day. He attended the premiere of his four-part Disney+ reality docuseries Rennervations, walking hand-in-hand with his 10-year-old daughter Ava Berlin Renner. He was surrounded by his larger family whom he's credited in helping him recover after being run over by his 14,330-pound PistenBully on his Reno, Nev., property.
Jeremy used a cane to keep stabilized — having broken "35 or so" bones in the accident, he said on Monday's Jimmy Kimmel Live — and then switched to a scooter as he worked his way down the press line at the Regency Village Theatre in Los Angeles.
Father and daughter matched in dark blue. It marked Ava's first red carpet, as he's been notoriously protective of putting her in the spotlight. (Her mom is his ex-wife, model Sonni Pacheco.)
Jeremy Renner arrives at the premiere of #Rennervations with his family pic.twitter.com/VuF96rBLwj
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) April 12, 2023
"I look a little beat up right now, but I promise you this show is what's propelling me to get better and makes me want to get better every day," he told Variety of the series, which is now streaming, that sees The Avengers star traveling the globe to help reimagine unique purpose-built vehicles that work in service of local communities."I set out a goal to be walking this carpet. And here I am enjoying it. Otherwise it would have gone to an abyss with no date and lost traction and excitement and I would have been very, very, very frustrated. I'm very excited right now because we're here."
Jeremy told People that the event marked his "first time to kind of get out of my bed and out of rehab and to be on my feet and be out in the world. It's intense for me, it's a lot, but it's a step in the direction I want to be going, right? And this is exactly what I want to be doing and exactly where I want my life to be right now."
As for having his family there, "It's everything," he told People. "They're the fuel behind a lot of things that I do, and it's nice to be able to share this with them and be a part of it."
That held true especially for Ava. He also shared that his daughter was "a big part of the design on some of ... these buses and these ideas [around the repurposed vehicles]. She's been a big part of that narrative on the show, but also in the behind the scenes of it all. It's great to be doing something you love to do with people you love. That, to me, is like what heaven is. That's the greatest dessert."
The event drew a big crowd, including Disney CEO Bob Iger. Jeremy signed autographs for fans waiting to see him.
Following the screening of the premiere, Jimmy Kimmel hosted a Q&A and Jeremy was on the panel. He receiving a standing ovation when he arrived on his scooter.
Talking about the accident near his Lake Tahoe home — when he was run over by the snowplow after trying to jump back into the vehicle to prevent it from hitting his nephew — he said, "My mom wants to light it on fire and have a big old party," according to Variety.
But he doesn't want to part with it. "The thing's amazing, I love the thing," he said of the vehicle, which was recently returned to him. "I just have to learn to drive it better," as he hadn't set the emergency brake.
Speaking of his recovery, he told the crowd, "It takes a lot of people. It starts with my family and my daughter. Then a big part of my recovery was this show. It set a big milestone for me to get better, to make sure all of this hard work was not all for nothing. I mean, running my damn self over, right? I had a lot of love, man."
Jeremy's energy was remarkable. After the screening and Q&A, he joined the reception outside, where he walked around with his cane and hugged his loved ones.
The actor, who documented his recovery on social media, gave his first interview to Diane Sawyer last week. He said metal plates were put in his face to support his eye socket, revealing, "I could see my eye with the other eye." He has titanium rods in one of his legs. He said he was "awake through every moment" of the ordeal.
Jeremy also recalled to Sawyer how Ava told him after the accident that she "was scared" and told him "she loved me."
On Monday's Jimmy Kimmel Live, the Mayor of Kingstown star danced on the set. He also recapped being kicked out of the first ICU he was in. Kimmel introduced him as "indestructible Jeremy Renner" and declared him the "toughest Avenger."
Jeremy's family was with him for his Kimmel appearance — and they were together the whole weekend before. The group made a trip to Six Flags Magic Mountain in Valencia, Calif. Jeremy kept up with help from his scooter.