'you're not gonna kill me'
Jeremy Renner tells Diane Sawyer he was 'awake through every moment' of snow plow accident
Jeremy Renner is opening up for the first time about the snow plow accident that could have killed him.
The Hawkeye actor sat down with Diane Sawyer for an interview set to air April 6 on ABC, his first since he was crushed by a snow plow on New Year's Day while trying to stop it from hitting his nephew. In a preview clip, Sawyer noted that Renner broke eight ribs in 14 places and also broke his knee, ankles, shoulder, and more, and the actor said he remembers "all of" the pain.
"I was awake through every moment," he said.
Renner recalled wondering what his body would look like after the accident and if he would "just be like a spine and a brain, like a science experiment." The interview preview included a clip from the 911 call, in which Renner can be heard moaning in pain in the background. But Renner told Sawyer he would "do it again" to save his nephew. The actor's nephew also spoke to Sawyer, recounting that when "I ran up to him, I didn't think he was alive."
Opening up about his recovery, Renner said he "chose to survive," adding, "You're not gonna kill me. No way." He also acknowledged that he's a "lucky man," telling Sawyer that while he has "lost a lot of flesh and bone in this experience," he has been "refueled and refilled with love and titanium."
Renner is set to make his first public appearance since the accident at the premiere of his new Disney+ show Rennervations on April 11.