Cynicism is one of social media’s default settings, so it wasn’t a shock to anyone that a full-blown trailer promoting Jeremy Renner‘s first interview since his near-death accident would find Disney being accused of trying to monetize a terrifying moment where the actor nearly lost his life.
However, it’s not the existence of the sit-down that’s generating even more quizzical glances across the Twittersphere, but the way it’s being marketed. The footage intersperses clips of Renner doing heroic deeds as the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Hawkeye, cut together with heart-wrenching instances of the two-time Academy Award nominee lying in a hospital bed.
One of the first things that came to mind for a lot of people – whether it be for better or worse – was Prime Video’s superhero smash hit The Boys, leaving many to wonder why Disney-backed ABC opted to go for a tone that was more reminiscent of Vought-sponsored propaganda than anything else.
It’s impossible not to be amazed by the speed of Renner’s recovery considering that he broke upwards of 30 bones and was immediately airlifted to intensive care after nearly being torn to shreds by his own snowplow, never mind the fact he’s preparing to get back out there and shake hands, talk to the press, and promote upcoming streaming series Rennervations without a care in the world.
That doesn’t mean his fans can’t feel uneasy about the way it’s being handled, though, even if you’d imagine he would be the one to sign off on anything relating to his own experience.
