The actor released the first song off his upcoming EP on New Year's Day, the one-year anniversary of the snow plow accident.
Jeremy Renner was determined to recover after his near-fatal snow plow accident. On New Year's Eve, the 52-year-old actor appeared on CNN's live broadcast, and he told hosts Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen what made him fight to live after the terrifying accident on January 1, 2023.
"I'm just so blessed that I had so many things to live for," Renner explained. "I have a giant family, I have a 10-year-old daughter. I would've disappointed and really messed up a lot of people's lives if I would've passed. There's a lot for me to get better for."
Renner joked that he's "also a pretty stubborn SOB," noting, "There was a lot for me to fight for, and recovery was just a one-way road in my mind."
"My recovery became relief for me, because I knew I could give relief to my family, my daughter, and to all those that I really affected like my poor nephew, who was there with me on that day," he said. "I gave him images that he can never unsee, but I know that my healing would be healing for him. With that, I'd never thought about my own physical ailments, or my own pain, or my own anguish."
"I had so many things to fight for, so the one-way road of recovery was my mental, sort of, attitude, and that attitude was always to get better. There's no option other than that," Renner added. "I still work at every part, every day, and thank God that I have a lot to fight for. I couldn't be more blessed to share my life with the depths of love of my family and everyone that supported me over this last year."
Like he did one year ago, Renner spent New Year's Eve with his family. Heading into 2024, he said, "We have a lot to celebrate this year and kind of recorrect what happened last year. I really feel pretty blessed by it."
This year will be a big one for Renner, as he's set to release his debut EP, Love and Titanium, which tells the story of his recovery. His first song, "Wait," came out on New Year's Day, and the full EP will be released Jan. 19.
"Music has always been pretty cathartic and healing for me... This is more of a narrative of the life and death and recovery of all last year. So it's like more of a journal entry," Renner said. "The music, it crosses a lot of different genres. It's more cinematic in a lot of ways, I feel like."
"It wasn't until the summer that we started considering it. I wasn't even strong enough to stand up at a microphone at that point," he continued. "It was great. It was wonderfully healing, I think, for even the people I wrote it with, who are all my friends. All of my recovery's been the better I got, the better every one else got. The music became also a narrative of that. I'm very happy to be able to do it."
Renner celebrated the release of "Wait" on Instagram Monday, explaining of his daughter Ava, "Reason number one for my recovery is her. I asked her to 'wait for me' when I first saw her January 14 as I arrived home. As I got better, she got better, less afraid."
"There is simply no better motivator to recover than to heal your family and friends," Renner added. "... With gratitude always, thank you all for your love and support this last full year. I needed every ounce of goodwill and prayer."
In addition to his music, Renner is gearing up to return to acting. He'll start filming season three of Mayor of Kingstown later this month.
"It's been a really wonderfully busy year," he told Cooper and Cohen. "I think I'm ready. I think I'm strong enough. We'll see. I literally go back in a week. I'll be doing my best, trying my hardest."
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