Summary
- Jeremy Renner's acting career had humble beginnings, starting with small comedic gigs and working as a makeup artist to make ends meet.
- Renner's breakthrough came with a role as Jeffrey Dahmer in a 2002 film, which changed how people in the industry saw him and opened doors for more opportunities.
- Despite missing out on certain roles, such as taking over for Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible, Renner eventually became a household name with his portrayal of Hawkeye in The Avengers.
Before he became part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Jeremy Renner was definitely not as well-known as he is now as Hawkeye. It's been a long road for the actor, who had seemingly peaked when he had an unfortunate accident that may have ruined his ability to act and earn a living.
It wasn't Jeremy's first brush with danger, either. He's had plenty of near-misses on movie sets, including that time he broke both his arms. Before that, though, Renner was just a struggling actor hoping to make it big. He finally got his 'breakthrough' with a specific film that he says changed how people saw him—and led to more (and lucrative) work.
Jeremy Renner Started Out With Small Comedic Gigs
In 1995, Jeremy Renner was cast in his very first film: National Lampoon's Senior Trip. The film wasn't highly regarded, but it was a foot in the door. In a timeline of his career (with Vanity Fair), Jeremy called his introduction to acting "dumb luck."
After taking an acting class in college, Renner said "everything kind of shifted," and he realized his dream. Like any other would-be actor, he didn't find success overnight and worked as a makeup artist on the side to pay his bills.
He also struggled to keep the lights on, and wasn't particularly picky about his work.
Renner stuck with the weekend gig for eight years while auditioning for parts, before getting National Lampoon. That was a "big, big milestone" for him, realizing that he would actually land gigs from time to time.
While Jeremy did land multiple gigs after that 1995 film, his next notable "timeline" accomplishment was the one that he credited with changing his acting trajectory. He was only a handful of films into acting and had appeared on a few TV series in bit parts, but a 2002 film changed everything.
Jeremy Renner Played Jeffrey Dahmer, And The Job Changed His Life
By the time Jeremy had been working in Hollywood for about seven years, he was still struggling. He told Vanity Fair that there was an actor's strike around that time, so he had been booking a lot of commercials to help make ends meet.
When his agent heard about a role playing Jeffrey Dahmer, Jeremy thought it sounded "interesting." Renner auditioned and got the job the same day, starting work on the film three days later.
It might not be the most glamorous job he's ever done, but Jeremy noted that the film was a turning point in his career because a lot of people in the industry "saw it and noticed it."
Instead of being recognized as a goofy character from films like National Lampoon's Senior Trip, Jeremy now had a 'real' and important artistic accomplishment under his belt. Looking back, it's probably not a highlight of his early career for most people, especially because of the films about Dahmer that have followed.
Yet the role led directly to his being featured in 2008's The Hurt Locker, an acclaimed film that more or less put Renner on the map in Hollywood.
Jeremy explained that director Kathryn Bigelow saw him in Dahmer and knew he was right for the role. Even though actually preparing and filming the movie took a lot of time (and then even more time for it to be released), Jeremy was committed and looked back on the experience fondly.
From there, the roles kept coming; The Hurt Locker was a "life experience" and so much more than a role, Renner explained. It opened up doors for him, which he wouldn't have had access to had Kathryn not seen his first big movie.
The Hurt Locker earned Kathryn Bigelow an Oscar, the first for a female director, which made that career accomplishment all the sweeter for Renner.
None of that would have ever happened if Jeremy hadn't first portrayed Jeffrey Dahmer, long before Ross Lynch (in My Friend Dahmer) or Evan Peters (Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story) did.
Jeremy Renner Didn't Always Land His Favored Roles
Though he came a long way from living as a poor actor with no running water or electricity pre-Dahmer, Jeremy Renner didn't always have a ton of luck in Hollywood. There were roles he missed out on, like the time he was meant to take over for Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible.
As fans know, Tom Cruise stuck with it, leaving Jeremy to find other gigs, though the actor did appear with Tom in Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol and, later, Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation.
Eventually, in 2012, Jeremy became Hawkeye in The Avengers, and the rest is history. He's reprised the role various times, with the latest being a miniseries featuring Clint Barton as its lead (the series is titled Hawkeye.
Also in 2023, Jeremy debuted on Rennervations, a Disney series centering on vehicle renovations. His accident didn't impact filming of the show, but Jeremy did struggle at the premiere, where he was still feeling the after-effects of his injuries and various surgeries post-snowplow accident.
