Jeremy Renner: Women Will Always Take a Backseat to My Career

USMagazine, Tuesday, November 22, 2011, 10:22am (PST)

Jeremy Renner seems to have it all: two Academy Award nominations, a starring role in The Bourne Legacy, a handful of A-list pals.

One thing he doesn't have? A girlfriend.

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"I never dated, because I couldn't afford to date. I didn't even have electricity. You try to put a positive spin on it, like, 'Hey, this is so sexy -- look at all these candles!'" Renner, 40, tells the December issue of Details. "But I loved what I was doing. The sacrifices I made in personal relationships had the biggest effect on my life. Even now, any woman would take a No. 2 seat to my job."

Renner's longest relationship occurred in his twenties and lasted five and a half years. He decided not to propose because he didn't view himself as a solid provider.

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"'What the hell are you doing next week, motherf-cker, let alone 40 years from now?'" he asked his then-love. "'And are you willing to wipe my ass when we get old?'"

That's not to say Renner hasn't given love a shot since then. "There've been a handful of girls over the last years," he admits. "But it's been very difficult. How does it go any further?"

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"I have a wonderful life, but it means nothing if it cannot be shared. That's all I'm missing right now. It's a little unbalanced for me," the Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol star tells Details. "Right now the only thing consistent in my life is that little dog. That's why I got it. I was getting really lonely. I needed somebody or something to be there with me through the whole journey."

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