It was on New Year's Day in 2023 that Hawkeye's Jeremy Renner was crushed by a snowplow while attempting to save his nephew. However, just over a year after he sustained life-threatening injuries, the actor returned to work in February to shoot Mayor of Kingstown season 3.
To recap, Renner jumped onto the rolling snowplow when he noticed it sliding towards his nephew and was pulled underneath and crushed. Sustaining more than 30 broken bones, he underwent emergency surgery to save his life and spent the vast majority of 2023 recovering.
Talking to The Direct, Renner's Mayor of Kingstown co-star Michael Beach (Dead Boy Detectives) claimed the MCU vet "actually died" following the incident.
"Jeremy [Renner] is a war horse, man. I mean that guy, you know, he broke 38 bones. He actually died, which I didn't know until he told me, and he's been coming back," the actor said. "And he says he wasn't sure how it would be. But he was ready. And he says every week, he feels stronger and stronger."
"And there's been no interruption because of his physical abilities or not. He's in it doing it. He's great. Yeah, he's a great guy, man. And he's really as tough as nails."
In a recent interview, Thor star Chris Hemsworth revealed how Renner's fellow original six Avengers reacted to the news of Renner's accident.
"We were all on our Avengers text chain, we were all chatting. And it was wild. None of us really knew how serious it was," he explained. "I think anything like that, it’s an immediate realisation of 'Wow, any of us can go at any minute.'"
His fellow Hawkeye, Hailee Steinfeld, has also praised Renner's tenacity. "I mean, if there is a real-life superhero in anyone, it is that man," she said. "I am just so beyond grateful to see how well he's doing."
"He is just so unbelievably strong. The amount of strength and bravery and courage that he has had through his whole recovery and healing process has just been astounding," Steinfeld added. "I was able to see him a few weeks ago, and again, he's a freaking superhero."
There's no specific word on the actor's possible MCU return, though we're not banking on Hawkeye season 2 now Kate Bishop appears to be joining the Young Avengers. Clint Barton is bound to factor into Avengers 5, though, giving Renner ample time to prepare for all those stunts.
As always, stay tuned for updates as we have them.