Jeremy Renner Was Certain He Would Be Dead From Snowplow Accident, Wrote Last Words To Family

Actor Jeremy Renner was seriously injured on New Year's Day in a terrible snowplow accident, and he now says he would have died were it not for the help of his nephew. Renner also said he wrote his "last words" to his family with the expectation that he would not survive his injuries.

ABC News interviewed Renner about the accident that left him with 30 broken bones. The full discussion is coming on April 6, but in a teaser, an emotional Renner shared new details on the accident. "If i was there on my own, that would have been a horrible way to die, and surely I would have. Surely. But, I wasn't alone--it was my nephew, sweet Alex. And the rest of the calvary came."

Renner was run over by his own Snowcat in Tahoe after using it to help a stranded family member. The ABC News clip also contains a previously unheard 911 call in which the caller pleads to have ambulances come quickly due to Renner being in "rough shape."

Renner said in the ABC News clip that, when he was in the hospital following the accident, he was preparing to say goodbye to his family. "I'm writing down notes in my phone--the last words to my family," he said. You can see the clip below.

According to reporter Diane Sawyer, Renner broke eight rips in 14 places, and also broke his right knee, right ankle, left leg, left ankle, right clavicle, and right shoulder. He also broke his jaw and suffered a collapsed lung after it was pierced from one of his rib bones.

"What's my body going to look like?" Am I just going to be a spine and a brain, like a science experiment?" Renner said he remembers thinking (via Variety). "I chose to survive. That's not gonna kill me, no way. I've lost a lot of flesh and bone in this experience, but I've been refueled and refilled with love and titanium."

Renner received an outpouring of support after the accident, from fans, and from other movie stars like Chris Evans and Chris Pratt. Renner's TV series, Mayor of Kingstown, returned on January 15, and the key art toned down his character's face scars in the wake of Renner's real-life accident.

Renner is a two-time Oscar nominee, known for his roles in The Hurt Locker and The Town. In the MCU, he plays Clint Barton AKA Hawkeye.