Jeremy Renner on new memoir and how breathing helped him survive near-fatal accident

Oscar-nominated actor Jeremy Renner opened up about his harrowing recovery from a near-fatal snowcat accident in an interview on “CBS Mornings” while discussing his new memoir, “My Next Breath.”

Renner was crushed by a 14,000-pound snowcat on New Year’s Eve Day 2023, breaking more than 38 bones. Paramedics initially doubted he would survive.

“Your body is lit up and you’re drowning, you’re on fire, and being struck by lightning all at once,” Renner said, describing the excruciating pain during the 45 minutes he waited for medical help.

The “Mayor of Kingstown” star credits his survival to focusing solely on breathing. 

“I wasn’t going to breathe, it didn’t matter my eyeballs were out of my head and my legs were all twisted up like a pretzel,” he recalled. “I’ll worry about that later. You gotta breathe first.”

Renner said he was Initially reluctant to share his story.

“I didn’t want to write it. I just don’t think it was valuable in my life because I lived it,” he said. “It was a private incident that happened in my driveway. Why does anybody care about it?”

However, he came to realize the value in sharing his experience. 

“Getting out of your own way is important to achieving, getting anything you want in your life. That’s the lesson I had to learn,” Renner said. “It was silly of me not to share it.”

Renner’s 9-year-old daughter, Ava, provided powerful motivation during his recovery. In the book, he includes a letter she wrote for school describing her proudest moment: Seeing her father driving to pick her up after the accident.

“She was my fuel to get better,” Renner said. “She gets better if I get better. All I have to do is get better for her.”

Despite permanent injuries including a jaw broken in three places and misaligned teeth, Renner has embraced a simplified perspective on life. 

“I think it’s a way of zooming out and focusing,” he said of his recovery mindset. “What do I give value to? It’s changed since the accident. There’s a lot of white noise I’ve released. I oversimplify life because it is just that simple. Living in that space is quite peaceful, joyful, clean life.”

When asked what he would tell himself during those critical moments fighting for his life, Renner answered simply: “Keep breathing. It works.”

“My Next Breath” is out today.