Actor Jeremy Renner appeared in his first interview since fighting for his life after a New Year’s Day snow plow accident left him severely injured, as well as issued a Twitter update revealing that he is up and walking the treadmill.
Jeremy Renner back on his feet after months-long recovery battle
Actor Jeremy Renner, 52, posted an update and a video to Twitter on Sunday, showing him walking on a treadmill, a sign of progress after months of recovery following a New Year’s Day snow plow accident that left him severely injured.
“I now have to find OTHER things to occupy my time so my body can recover from my will,” Renner wrote on Twitter.
The accident occurred on Renner’s property outside Reno, Nevada, in January and broke more than 30 bones in his body, requiring multiple surgeries, People reported.
Among the injuries to Renner were a broken face and eye socket, eight ribs broken in 14 places, as well as a broken right knee, left tibia, clavicle, right shoulder, and ankles. He also suffered a punctured lung, among other significant injuries.
On New Year’s Day, Renner was run over by his own snow plow as he was attempting to help a family member free their vehicle that was stuck in the snow. The machine, said to weigh at least 14,330 pounds, ran over Renner. He was rushed to the hospital in critical condition.
Renner gives first interview since accident
Jeremy Renner sat down for an interview with Diane Sawyer, his first since his accident, and it will air in an hour-long special on April 6 on ABC, entitled “Jeremy Renner: The Diane Sawyer Interview – A Story of Terror, Survival and Triumph.”
The Hollywood Reporter published a few advanced excerpts from the interview, and ABC posted a video preview of the forthcoming special on YouTube.
“I chose to survive,” Renner told Sawyer when asked about the impact of the accident on his family. “You’re not going to kill me. No way.”
The special also interviewed Renner’s relatives, including the nephew he saved from being crushed by the snowplow.
“I’d do it again,” Renner told Sawyer. “Because it was going right at my nephew.”
Instead, the snowplow ran over Renner.
“I just perfectly see him in a pool of blood from his head,” Renner’s nephew recalled. “I ran up to him. I didn’t think he was alive.”
In addition to interviews, the special also offers a behind-the-scenes look at Renner’s ongoing recovery, including his going through strengthening exercises, electrical stimulation, and using an anti-gravity treadmill.
