USA - Jeremy Renner (54) narrowly escaped death over two years ago. Fortunately, he was able to recover and now reveals how bad the accident actually was.

On New Year's Day 2023, the "Marvel" star was run over by a snowplow as he tried to save his then 27-year-old nephew from it.

As Page Six reported, the 54-year-old published his book "My Next Breath: The Story of My Survival" today, Tuesday.

In it, he describes the horror accident when the six-wheeled machine weighing around 6350 kilograms rolled over him.

"I heard every bone crack: skull, jaw, cheekbones, molars, fibula, tibia, lungs, eye sockets, skullcap, pelvis, ulna, legs, arms, skin - crack, crunch, crack, crush," Renner said.

He also stated that his "heart had dropped to 18 beats per minute" and that at this rate "you are basically dead". The "Hawkeye" actor suffered a total of 30 broken bones, including 14 broken ribs.

He described the feeling shortly after the accident as "not fully there". This was because the fractures and a collapsed rib cage compressed one of his lungs so much that he could barely breathe.

But that wasn't the worst injury: his left eye burst out of his skull - caused by a fracture in the eye socket.

"I could see out of my left eye with my right," says the 54-year-old.

He was quickly taken to hospital by helicopter, where he immediately underwent several operations.

When he regained consciousness, he wrote an emotional message to his family: "If I get to the point where I can only go on living with machines or strong painkillers, then I choose NOT to go on living. I have lived everything I wanted to live."

Surprisingly, he was discharged from hospital just two weeks later - but his recovery was far from complete.

In consultation with doctors, he began rehab at home - he trained hard to get back to life. Just three months later, he was fit enough to visit an amusement park!

Even though he had to go through incredible agony, he has no regrets: "I had to do something. [...] In those lightning-fast seconds, my nephew's life was hanging by a thread. If the machine had hit him, it would undoubtedly have killed him."