Paul Rudd found the perfect way to inject some levity into his message to Jeremy Renner after Renner’s near-fatal accident earlier this year. Renner appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live on Monday night where he shared the video he received from Rudd during his recovery. His Avengers co-star sent him a video through Cameo, pretending that Renner was just an eager fan.
“So Rudd, who I love so much, he happened to be in town promoting his movie and he came by a couple of times to the hospital,” Renner explained. “Always just making my day because he’s one of the funniest guys around.” He then explained Cameo โ a service where fans can order short videos from their favorite celebrities as gifts for their friends or family members. Rudd is active on Cameo, and he sent Renner a video from the service acting as though someone had ordered the video for him.
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Renner sent the clip to Kimmel so that they could show it in its entirety on TV. In it, Rudd said: “Hey, Jerry. I hear you’re a little banged up, got in a fight with a snow blower apparently? Anyway, I just wanted to send this video. It’s really from the heart and I hope you’re feeling better. Sounds like you are. Apparently, you’re a pretty tough guy. So maybe I’ll get to meet you one day and wouldn’t that be something? In the meantime, take care and take it easy for a while. And next time maybe just let the snow melt. Feel better, Jerry.”
The clip was especially easy to laugh at now that Renner is back on his feet and even able to make appearances on talk shows. Renner was crushed by a massive snowplow on Jan. 1, 2023 while trying to clear the snow around his home in Nevada. He needed to be airlifted from the scene and is still undergoing a long recovery process. Renner broke over 30 bones and needed multiple surgeries.
Renner told Kimmel that he was obviously in shock in the immediate aftermath, and the reactions from his Avengers co-stars actually helped him gauge his own condition. He said that after talking to Chris Evans, “I think that’s where I found out I was really messed up. That I really got injured like, ‘Wow, everybody’s acting like this is an open casket and you’re just living through it.’”
Renner even joked that his co-stars are “terrible actors” as they weren’t able to hide their horror at his injuries. He said: “They were giving me reactions like they didn’t know what to say. I talked to Chris Evans. I talked to a lot of friends and their reaction is what made me feel like, ‘Oh, I think I really hurt myself.’ I might not pull out of this. They couldn’t hide the fact that I looked awful.”
This was Renner’s second TV appearance since his accident, following a long-form interview with Diane Sawyer that is streaming now on Hulu. Now that he is able to move around himself, Renner seems eager to get back to work.