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January marks one year since Jeremy Renner was involved in a fatal snowfall accident that crushed more than 30 bones in his body while trying to rescue his nephew. His recovery from the accident extended throughout the year as he worked with doctors to treat chest trauma and other injuries. In the months that followed, the actor began to think differently about life and take care of his mental health as much as his physical health.
“My greatest healing has been my mindset and my will to be here and push to recover and get better…. ‘Be exceptional… I feel it’s my duty to do that,'” Renner wrote on Instagram Monday evening. “Not to waste my life to save it, but to give back To my family, friends and everyone who has enabled me to endure. I thank you all.”
The actor opened the post by discussing the different forms of therapy he has tried since the accident. “I have been exploring all types of treatment since January 14,” he explained. “Every day, countless hours of physical therapy, peptide injections, drip and IV drives, stem cells and exosomes, red/infrared light therapy, hyperbaric chamber 2.0 atmospheres, cold plunges, the list goes on and on.”
In April, Renner made his first red carpet appearance since his accident, returning for the premiere of his Disney+ series Enlightenment. There, he used a cane while walking and was also seen riding a motorcycle. The actor has been trying to speed up his recovery since before he was discharged from the hospital, joking to Jimmy Kimmel earlier this year: “I kept trying to get out of the hospital as soon as I got in. I’m going back to that hospital this week to apologize to every one of those nurses.”
But his injuries were extensive. In March, during an interview with Diane Sawyer, Renner revealed that he was “awake every moment” of the accident, during which he suffered “eight broken ribs in 14 places.” Right knee, right ankle broken, left leg broken, left ankle broken, right clavicle broken, right shoulder broken. The face, eye socket, jaw, mandible are broken. Collapsed lung. “Perforated rib bone and liver.”
“I chose to survive. This will in no way kill me,” Renner told Sawyer. “I lost a lot of flesh and bone in this experience, but I was fueled and refilled with love and titanium.”
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