Jeremy Renner says he doesn't have 'energy' for tough roles after snow plow accident

After his snow plow accident in January 2023, Jeremy Renner said he has yet to regain the energy to take on "challenging" roles yet.

In a June 24 guesting on the Smartless podcast, the American actor said he's still focusing on his recovery at the moment.

“I just don’t have the energy for it. I don’t have the fuel,” he opened up. “I have so much fuel to put into this reality, this body, all this stuff. I can’t just go play make-believe right now."

The 53-year-old noted that it "takes a lot of time to get right here every day just so I can have a positive thought, so I can progress, so I can always keep growing.”

Looking back, Renner said the accident helped him value the present moment, even accept "divine intervention."

Nevertheless, he said he's "very terrified" to return in front of the camera. “Because I’m to do, like, f**king fiction? I’m still trying to live in reality, I’m trying to live," he said. "So it was a hard line for me to cross."

"It was a big stretch. It was very, very challenging for me mentally to get over that hump," he added.

In January 2023, Renner was helping a family member who got stuck on the snow-covered private road near his home when he got run over by his truck-sized snow-moving equipment weighing 6,500kg (14,330lbs). It led to heavy bleeding in the head and crushing his upper torso.

Renner is best known for playing Hawkeye in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. He most recently played the character in the eponymous Disney+ series.

He also got Academy Award nominations for his performances in The Hurt Locker (2008) and The Town (2010).