Jeremy Renner has denied a series of allegations raised by filmmaker Yi Zhou, including that he sent her unsolicited sexual messages and threatened to call ICE on the Chinese writer-director.
“The allegations are totally inaccurate and untrue,” a rep for Renner told PEOPLE.
Zhou, who says she worked with Renner on both the documentary “Chronicles of Disney” as well as an animated film, came forward with her allegations against the 54-year-old Marvel star in a series of Instagram posts over the past few days.
She claimed Renner introduced himself to her “out of the blue” in June with a string of “unwanted” images via WhatsApp and direct messages, “behavior that, according to public reports, he has exhibited before.”
“He convinced me of his sincerity, saying he had been single for a long time and [was] open to a long-term relationship,” she said. “I believed in him, in the power of love and in the possibility of redemption.”
Zhou went on to allege that Renner later “entered into written agreements” with her production company to be involved in the projects, but then “refused” to promote the films. Instead, he denied “any personal relation[ship] or professional collaboration.”
“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,” Zhou wrote, adding that the “misinformation and intimidation” caused her “personal and reputational harm.”
Renner’s lawyer, Marty Singer, blasted the allegations as “false, outrageous and highly defamatory.” He told PEOPLE that Renner met Zhou once in July, when she interviewed him for the documentary at a hotel in Reno, Nev.
They shared a “brief consensual encounter,” and then met again in August, Singer said, adding that the actor has not spoken to Zhou in over a month. He has also ignored her alleged “sexually explicit messages expressing her love,” the last of which was sent on Oct. 24, according to the lawyer.
“The true facts are that Ms. Zhou has relentlessly and aggressively harassed and pursued my client for months with no reciprocation on my client’s part, other than a single brief encounter on July 12, 2025,” Singer said.
In separate Instagram posts shared Saturday, Zhou seemingly waved off Singer’s version of events with a series of screenshots she says back her allegations.
“It is my right to correct misinformation about me,” she wrote.
Zhou also claimed that at least four women reached out to her with similar allegations of misconduct against Renner, and that another victim was preparing to come forward.
“He can’t deny when so many witness the same [behavior],” she said.
