Renner posed shirtless for the cover of ‘Men’s Health,’ where he detailed how his life and career have changed since the harrowing incident.
Jeremy Renner isn’t shying away from showing off his scars.
The Mayor of Kingstown star posed shirtless on the cover of the July/August issue of Men’s Health magazine, where he opened up about how his life has changed after surviving a snowplow accident that left him on life support.
On the cover of the magazine, the 53-year-old actor’s scars can be seen on his back, shoulders and stomach. Inside the spread, a scar on his leg is visible as he wears workout shorts.
“I never really had scars before, they were probably more emotional, spiritual scars, you know?” Renner said in a video that accompanied the cover shoot. “And now there are some physical ones. But the physical ones aren’t even from the accident, they’re just because of the accident. All those are just reminders of the beautiful, beautiful, day that could have been a really bad day.”
Benedict Evans for Men’s Health
That “beautiful day,” as he calls it, left Renner severely injured, with the 53-year-old reflecting on the moment he said he died following the accident.
“I’m glad I’m here, and I’m going to keep feeding what you take with you: those shared experiences with those you love. It’s eternal, and you take it with you,” Renner shared. “It’s connected. There’s no time, place, or space. It’s magnificent. It’s the mind’s eye. Not your vision. You don’t need vision — you’re dead. Vision is part of the stupid body thing. But the mind’s eye you take with you. You see in your mind — that’s being dead. That’s what it’s like being dead.”
He added, “What you can visualize with your eyes closed. It’s awesome. It’s awesome! And by the way, everyone’s in it! It’s what your imagination is. It was joy. It was exhilarating peace. Exhilarating peace. You’re connected to everything all at once. All the love from the third-grade teacher you fell in love with to the everything all at once. All that’s there. Continual. Perpetual. In perpetuity. It’s infinite. It’s magnificent.”
Renner, who is the father of 11-year-old daughter Ava, said another lesson he had to learn following the accident, was how to accept love from his family and friends, and the understanding that the accident changed how some people look at him.
“I’m a tough guy to love, I think?” the Hawkeye actor admitted. “And I think my family and people put all that aside. There’s a lot of people that love me. And I had no idea. I had to learn how to receive all this love, and it’s not easy. From people you don’t even know, even. Why is this accident such a thing? But then I said, F–k, stop asking why. Just receive it. I was famous for having a bow and arrow; now I’m famous for overcoming something as a man.”
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As for how he keeps going, getting himself in possibly the best shape he’s been in in years, Renner said he just “puts in the work.”
“Look, I’m 53. I’m on the downslide of trying to gain muscle. You get atrophy, testosterone level’s at 300, no growth hormone in me at all — everything’s going on a downslide. Protein helps with the muscles, so I’m on a higher-protein diet. The more strength I have, the more energy I have to keep going,” he explained. “People ask how. How do you do this? You just put in the work, man. Love yourself; be confident in yourself. How do you find confidence? You take one step, then you take another step, and then guess what, Hot Sauce? You’re walking! You know what I mean? You breathe out, then you breathe in, then you breathe out. Well now you’re breathing!”
Renner’s mantra since the accident: “The only thing we can control in our lives is our perspective,” and that’s exactly what he’s doing as he puts himself back in front of audiences a year-and-a-half after that fateful day.
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