Jeremy Renner reveals how Robert Downey Jr. cheered him up after snowplow accident

Jeremy Renner got through his painful hospitalization with help from a fellow Avenger.

In an interview with People, the "Hawkeye" actor, 53, revealed how Robert Downey Jr. cheered him up while he was recovering from his near-fatal snowplow accident last year. Renner said the "Iron Man" star was constantly checking in on him while he was in the ICU and would keep his spirits high.

"We ended up having really great chats on FaceTime, like we were dating or something," Renner said, noting that Downey helped take his mind off the "otherworldly pain" he was experiencing.

"He's like, 'Dude, the most important thing is you look good,' " Renner recalled. " 'I don't care how you feel, as long as you look good, that's all that matters.' "

Downey would also jokingly push him to get better because he wanted to see more episodes of his Paramount+ series "Mayor of Kingstown." "He's like, 'You've got to get back to do 'Mayor,' because we need to see what happens,' " Renner said with a laugh. "His ways are very heartwarming."

Renner was hospitalized in January 2023 after he was run over by his own snowplow while trying to help his nephew with car trouble, according to the Washoe County Sheriff's Office in Reno, Nevada. Renner broke more than 30 bones in the accident and told Diane Sawyer in an April interview that he could "see my eye with my other eye."

Watch: Jeremy Renner celebrates 10 months of recovery with workout video after snowplow accident

In November, Renner said that during his recovery, he underwent "countless hours of physical therapy, peptide injections, IV drips and pushes, stem cell and exosomes, red light/IR therapy, hyperbaric chamber 2.0 atmospheres, cold plunge, and the list goes on and on." He added that "my greatest therapy has been my mind and the will to be here and push to recover and be better."

Downey wasn't the only "Avengers" star who was there for Renner after the accident. Scarlett Johansson told Variety that she and "Captain America" star Chris Evans flew to Los Angeles together to visit Renner during his recovery. "I didn't know if I was ever going to see him again," she said.

Johansson also told Variety that after Renner's prognosis improved in the days following the accident, she, Evans, Downey, Chris Hemsworth and Mark Ruffalo told their co-star on an "Avengers" text chain, "OK, you beat us all. That's it. You won."

Renner returned to work on "Mayor of Kingstown" in January, a little over a year after his accident. "Day one on set … nervous today," he shared on Instagram. "Hope this works out that I can ACTUALLY pull this off for our production and more importantly the fans."

In February, Renner also told Entertainment Tonight he's ready to return to the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Hawkeye. "I'm always game," he said. "I'm gonna be strong enough, that's for sure. I'll be ready."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Jeremy Renner on how Robert Downey Jr. cheered him up after accident