Chinese filmmaker Yi Zhou has taken to Instagram to accuse Marvel Cinematic Universe star Jeremy Renner of inappropriate behavior, including sending sexually explicit photos and threatening to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). In a statement shared with Page Six, a representative for Renner has furiously denied the claims.
Zhou said in her post that during a meeting with Renner at his home in Nevada regarding her documentary, The Chronicles of Disney, that the actor reportedly drank an entire bottle of wine and got angry. She wrote:
“I had to lock myself in a room to be safe, praying he would not come into the room at night, as he was really angry. I did not say a word; I was so scared for my life.”
Zhou reached out to a colleague at Disney, with one unnamed recipient telling Zhou to share her address so they knew where she was.
“When I called him out privately about his past misconduct and asked him to behave properly, to respect me as a woman and as a filmmaker, he threatened to call immigration/ICE on me, an act that deeply shocked and frightened me.”
She shared with the Daily Wire the What’s Up exchange, in which Renner’s response said, “Immigration will be notified of your—.” Zhou refused to provide the rest of Renner’s alleged text to The Daily Mail. Renner nor any of his representatives have released a statement, though Zhou claims another victim, one who Renner cheated on her with, has spoken to the Daily Mail about coming forward.
More Accusations Against Jeremy Renner
According to The Daily Beast, Zhou was in a brief relationship with Renner while the two worked together on a documentary, The Chronicles of Disney, and an upcoming animated film, Stardust Future. Zhou shared multiple photos of herself with Renner. Zhou revealed she invited Renner to be part of these projects after he reached out to her in June 2025 on WhatsApp with “unwanted” photos. Zhou said in a recent post regarding their brief relationship:
“When I first received pornographic images, they were unwanted and unsolicited (cyber flashing). Then he talked me into having a relationship with him sold me his love…As a woman and as a filmmaker being in a relationship with someone with whom you also have projects in the process of being released, I debated for a long time how to present it given the difficulties I went through and the truth I discovered slowly throughout the last few months. I thought it would be more respectful for myself and for him to present it under the denomination of love rather than a new relationship or a fling or whatever you wanna call it, I have always respected him and will continue to respect him, but the love and the respect has not been reciprocated when the smear campaign started attacking us and continue to attack us online, I thought the truth about him should come out and truth is a defense.”
In the response from Renner’s representative, he said, “The allegations being made are totally inaccurate and untrue.”
These are damning accusations against Renner, and are not the first leveled against the actor. In 2019, Jeremy Renner’s ex-wife, Sonni Pacheco, filed multiple claims against the actor in a custody battle over their daughter. Renner made headlines in January 2023 for a very different reason, when he was in a snowplow accident that almost killed him. He had been slowly rebuilding his career following extensive year-long physical therapy treatment. He had even floated the idea of returning as Hawkeye in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, either for Hawkeye Season 2, Avengers: Doomsday, or Secret Wars. While many details about the allegations are still unknown, the case of Jonathan Majors is still a fresh reminder of how quickly this kind of accusation can see many offers of work suddenly vanish without warning.
