Hollywood Star, 54, Threatened Woman With ICE After Boasting He Is ‘Loving’

Jeremy Renner claimed he became “more vulnerable and more loving” than ever this summer—just before he reportedly threatened to “call ICE” on his Chinese movie collaborator.

Renner, who nearly died in a snowplow accident in 2023, painted himself as a man reborn in an interview with The Guardian in July. He said it was an “honor to be alive” and that the real Renner was no longer the Hollywood tough guy that he portrays.

“I’ve never been more connected and more open and more vulnerable and more loving,” he told the British paper. “And I’ve never received more goodwill. That connection was buried deep, deep, deep in my soul, beforehand, but now it’s at the forefront. It’s all that matters to me.”

HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 02: Yi Zhou attends the Los Angeles special screening of Amazon MGM Studios' "John Candy: I Like Me" at The Montalban on October 02, 2025 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images) — Yi Zhou, 37, has alleged that Jeremy Renner threatened to call immigration authorities on her. Frazer Harrison/Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

The Shanhai-born filmmaker Yi Zhou, 37, painted a horrifyingly different image of Renner this week.

She alleged that the Marvel star, 54, became “violent” during an August rampage involving alcohol, during which she scrambled to hide in a bathroom inside his home near Reno, Nevada, and frantically texted colleagues seeking advice.

“Can you lock yourself in the bathroom?” a co-worker allegedly responded to her. “He sounds crazy.”

Yi Zhou messages — Zhou said she feared for her life when Renner allegedly got drunk during a meeting at his Nevada home on August 20. She shared screenshots of her alleged messages with her co-workers with the Daily Mail. Yi Zhou

Zhou wrote back, “I did lock hope he can’t open. I’m worried he yelled for 2 hours with one bottle of wine down alone.”

Zhou, who worked with Renner on a pair of film projects, claimed that she feared for her life. She shared WhatsApp messages she said were between her and Renner with the Daily Mail.

In the alleged texts, Zhou accused the star actor of using “all apps to send d— pix” and wrote, “No one said anything—so far.”

A recreation of text messages exchanged between Chinese filmmaker Yi Zhou and Jeremy Renner. — Zhou refused to provide the rest of Renner’s alleged text, according to the Daily Mail. The Daily Beast recreated the alleged text messages between Zhou and Renner. Photo Illustration by The Daily Beast

The screenshot showed Renner responding: “Immigration will be notified of your—”

The text cuts off there. The Mail reported that Zhou “refused to provide the rest of Renner’s alleged cut-off message,” but suggested that he was threatening to call immigration authorities.

Zhou, whom Renner’s fans have targeted since she spoke out against him, has posted multiple photos on social media from inside Renner’s home as apparent proof of a relationship.

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A representative for Renner did not respond to a request for comment.

Zhou, who made a documentary and an animated movie with Renner this year, said the Hawkeye actor introduced himself over WhatsApp and later sent her “unwanted” sexual photos. Still, she said the two began dating not long after—though Renner has not publicly acknowledged the relationship.

Sonni Pacheco attends a gallery opening in 2016—two years after her tumultuous 10-month marriage with Jeremy Renner. Greg Doherty/Getty Images

Renner is not married. He previously tied the knot with Sonni Pacheco, with whom he shares a daughter, Ava, in 2014, but they split later that year.

Pacheco, a model, accused Renner of dangerous drug use, of threatening to kill her, and of firing a gun in the vicinity of their daughter during a custody battle. Renner never remarried, but told the Guardian that he and Pacheco now “get along very well.”

Millions rallied around Renner in 2023 after he suffered blunt chest trauma and 38 broken bones in the snowplow incident. He was rushed to a hospital in critical condition and was unable to walk for months.

In May, he published a memoir that detailed the traumatic event, his recovery, and how it changed him. He pointed to his openness in the book as further evidence that he was a changed man.

Jeremy Renner was unable to walk for three months after his New Year’s Day accident. His walking appeared labored by April 2023, but he was able to get around using a walking cane. Hollywood To You/Star Max/GC Images

Renner claimed that Ava and his foundation, RennerVation, which supports at-risk children and those in foster care, were his primary focuses in life now.

Zhou said that she believed Renner was a changed man, too, before things allegedly took a dark turn.

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“I believed in a Disney fairy tale when Jeremy Renner reached out to me and pursued me: I thought until recently love was pure and his accident made him a new person,” she posted to her 1.8 million Instagram followers on Thursday, alleging she had just learned that the actor was “cheating” on her with one of his fans.

She continued, “More to come, more scandal and misconduct. Many I was told seem to be fans he contacts at meet and greet or just online. How can we abuse of fans? He uses them for his own pleasure sends porn images then trashed them in the trash bin by ghosting. A pattern I was told is frequently exhibited by him.”

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