Since he rose to stardom with 2008’s “The Hurt Locker,” Jeremy Renner has proven a reliable and prolific leading man. And not long after “The Hurt Locker,” Renner landed in a handful of lucrative franchises. First came “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol,” followed quickly by “The Avengers,” and then in “The Bourne Legacy,” a franchise he took over from Matt Damon and in which he portrayed Agent Aaron Cross.
However, it seems Damon is poised to reclaim his starring role in the next Bourne film, which is slated for 2016. Renner is surprisingly excited about the notion, viewing Damon’s return not as a threat but as an opportunity to bring Cross and Bourne together on screen. "I think it really opens up the world and it keeps Bourne’s character active," Renner told HuffPost Entertainment. "I think Cross’ character is already going to continue to be active, [and] I think it will take creatives to bring them together, which is what I think is ultimately the plan."
“…Let them be adversaries, let them become buddies, whatever the heck it might be, them coming together would be a pretty tremendous thing,” he added.
Speaking of Renner’s action work, he recently dropped a few hints that fans of Marvel’s Hawkeye could see a lot more of their favorite archer in the next few years. Speaking to The Daily Beast about “Avengers: Age Of Ultron," Renner said that “Hulk has a more prominent role, and I have a more prominent role.” He also let it slide that “[he] signed on to ‘The Avengers 1-3’ and then ‘Hawkeye,’ in case they (Marvel) want to do a Hawkeye spin-off." It’s an interesting notion even though Renner is content to stay a utility player in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
But next up for Renner is the conspiracy thriller, “Kill the Messenger.” In the film, which opens October 10th, Renner plays Gary Webb, a San Jose crime reporter who in the ’90s uncovered what he called the Dark Alliance —a nearly unbelievable connection between Central American drug cartels and various parts of the U.S. government. Buzz about the film has been surprisingly muted, but Renner has a decent track record with respect to taking part in solid projects, and we’ll see how the film fares in just over a week’s time. Check out a clip below.