Hollywood’s Reckoning: Avengers: Doomsday Could Cut Jeremy Renner Amid New Allegations

Jeremy Renner is back in the headlines, and not for a new Marvel cameo or one of his music projects. A filmmaker he was collaborating with just accused him of sending explicit messages, and the fallout could brush up against his MCU future.

What sparked all this

Filmmaker Yi Zhou, who says she was working with Renner on two projects — a documentary called 'Chronicles of Disney' and an AI-animated feature titled 'Stardust Future' — posted on Instagram that the actor contacted her in June 2025 and followed up with explicit photos she did not ask for. She described the initial contact as coming via DM and WhatsApp and called the behavior unsolicited. The San Francisco Chronicle covered her posts.

Zhou also criticized the industry in her post, saying Hollywood looks the other way on bad behavior if there is money at stake.

Were they dating or not?

According to the Daily Mail, Zhou said she and Renner were dating. But per the San Francisco Chronicle, she later claimed he denied they were a couple and would not publicly acknowledge their time together or promote their outings.

So where does this leave Renner with Marvel?

He was not part of the most recent round of casting chatter for the next Avengers movie, but fans have been crossing fingers for a Hawkeye appearance whenever that lineup finally gets announced. Marvel, however, has a history of making hard calls when off-screen issues become the story.

• Terrence Howard was replaced by Don Cheadle as Rhodey between Iron Man and Iron Man 2.
• Edward Norton gave way to Mark Ruffalo as Bruce Banner after The Incredible Hulk.
• Jonathan Majors was convicted of a misdemeanor assault charge and a harassment violation in 2023; Marvel parted ways with him afterward.
• James Gunn was fired by Disney in 2018 over resurfaced tweets, then rehired after an apology and strong cast support; he made The Suicide Squad for DC between those two points.

One odd note floating around in the same rumor mill: a claim about 'Robert Downey Jr.' playing Doctor Doom as some kind of replacement for Majors. That is not something Marvel has announced, and it reads like pure speculation.

Also worth flagging: the title 'Avengers: Doomsday' and a December 18, 2026 release date are being tossed around by fan sites, but Marvel has not officially unveiled that title or date. Treat it as rumor until Marvel says otherwise.

Context from Renner's past headlines

This is not the first time Renner has been accused of troubling behavior. His ex-wife, model Sonni Pacheco, previously alleged drug and alcohol abuse, violent threats against her and himself, and even an incident where a gun was fired while their daughter was in the home, as reported by TMZ. Renner and Pacheco share custody of their daughter, Ava, who was born in 2013. They married in 2014, and she filed for divorce later that year.

Renner pushed back on accusations in a 2021 Guardian interview, saying they dehumanize public figures and often spread because they are sensational, not because they are true:

'being accused of things you have not done.'
'clickbait, and it hurts my feelings and it dehumanizes people'
'They happen all the time. It is all the salaciousness that happens out there.'

Big picture

Right now, Zhou's allegations are just that — allegations — posted on her social media and picked up by outlets like the San Francisco Chronicle and the Daily Mail. There is no official word from Marvel about Renner's future MCU appearances, and the next Avengers movie remains a moving target, title and date included. If any studio knows how to pivot, it is Marvel, but until they actually announce a lineup, Hawkeye's status is TBD.