Jeremy Renner Was Clueless Filming Avengers: Endgame’s Opening Scene

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Clint with his daughter

Spoilers ahead for Avengers: Endgame.

The Russo Brothers did the impossible with Avengers: Endgame, crafting a blockbuster that was built on the previous 21 movies, and had equal parts heart and epic action. Endgame went for the jugular immediately, with Hawkeye's opening scene. While obeying his house arrest, Clint is shown teaching his daughter Lila how to use a bow and arrow. But Thanos' snap happens on Wakanda, and Clint loses all of his family in one foul swoop.

It was an emotional scene, especially since audiences quickly did the math, realizing Linda Cardellini and the kids weren't long for this world. But it turns out that Jeremy Renner had no idea what was going on, as Infinity War and Endgame were filmed back to back, and he hadn't seen the horror of the snap. As Renner recently put it:

When we did shoot that, we shot back and forth between movies. I remember shooting with my family, teaching my daughter how to shoot a bow and arrow and I turn around and they're just gone. And I didn't know what was happening, I really didn't. I didn't know what was happening in Infinity War and everyone turning to dust, I didn't know that. So when I did that, we shot the scene and I was just like 'Where did they go?' because they just went away. They didn't tell me.

Marvel Studios' security is infamously tight, but it looks like Endgame's contents were guarded even from those closest to the film. Jeremy Renner was noticeably absent from Infinity War, which put his opening scene with the Bartons out of context.

Jeremy Renner's comments from at Celebrity Fan Fest in San Antonio (via Comic Book) are probably surprising to the masses of moviegoers who saw Avengers: Endgame in theaters. Renner's performance in the brief sequence is super powerful, as we watch his entire life fade away before him. You can't tell he was confused by the material, which shows just how serious the Hurt Locker's acting chops truly are.

Related: The 25 Most Emotional Moments In Avengers: Endgame

The details of Thanos' assault on the galaxy in Avengers: Infinity War likely would have been helpful for Jeremy Renner on set, but The Russo Brothers had a ton on their plate for their dual set of blockbusters. They were filming two Avengers movies back to back, and trying to keep the secrets of both projects under wraps. As such, Anthony and Joe Russo were forced to withhold some information from the cast, which is likely what happened for Renner and his first Endgame scene.

Losing his family ultimately set Clint Barton on a path of murder and revenge, killing criminals who were spared from Thanos' snap. Because why should they go on living, while his innocent family perished with the snap of a finger? Hawkeye's story in Endgame was about redemption and grief, and it should be interesting to see what comes next for the OG Avenger.

Avengers: Endgame is still in theaters now. Be sure to check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Corey Chichizola
Corey Chichizola
Movies Editor

Corey was born and raised in New Jersey. Graduated with degrees theater and literature from Ramapo College of New Jersey. After working in administrative theater for a year in New York, he started as the Weekend Editor at CinemaBlend. He's since been able to work himself up to reviews, phoners, and press junkets-- and is now able to appear on camera with some of his favorite actors... just not as he would have predicted as a kid. He's particularly proud of covering horror franchises like Scream and Halloween, as well as movie musicals like West Side Story. Favorite interviews include Steven Spielberg, Spike Lee, Jamie Lee Curtis, and more.