Nearly a year ago Bruce Willis’s family announced that the actor had been diagnosed with a brain disorder called aphasia, which primarily impairs one’s speech. On Thursday, his current wife, Emma Heming Willis, and his former wife, Demi Moore, along with their daughters said in a joint statement that “we now have a more specific diagnosis: frontotemporal dementia (known as FTD). Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce faces. While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis.”
On Instagram, they signed the statement, “In Love & Gratitude, Ladies of Willis/Moore.”
In a longer statement posted by the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration, the family added:
At the time of the original announcement, Willis’s family wrote that he would be stepping away from acting. Willis’s long and storied career began in the 1980s, and he found enduring fame through his role as John McClane in 1988’s Die Hard, which has since become a major film franchise. In more recent years, he kept his work to a series of direct-to-video movies. The Los Angeles Times reported last year that, before the confirmation of his diagnosis, anonymous staff on various sets had noted his decline—allegedly with regards to remembering lines and while handling a prop gun. (Representatives for Willis declined to comment at the time.)
In August, Emma Heming Willis posted on Instagram, “This was the summer of self discovery—finding new hobbies, going out of my comfort zone and staying active. My grief can be paralyzing but I’m learning how to live along side it. As my step-daughter [Scout Willis] told me, grief is the deepest and purest form of love. I hope you find some comfort in that too.”
