Bruce Willis forced to step away from acting after shock diagnosis
The film legend’s family has said he will cease acting after he was diagnosed with a disease that could affect his ability to read, write and understand language.
Bruce Willis has been diagnosed with aphasia and will be stepping away from his decades-long career, his family including fellow actor Demi Moore announced on Wednesday.
Aphasia is a medical condition that can affect a person’s ability to speak, write and understand language, both verbal and written, according to the US medical organisation the Mayo Clinic. It typically occurs after a stroke or a head injury, reported The New York Post.
“To Bruce’s amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities,” the 67-year-old’s family wrote in a statement shared to each of their Instagram accounts.
They added that he will be “stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him”.
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“This is a really challenging time for our family and we are so appreciative of your continued love, compassion and support,” the family continued.
“We are moving through this as a strong family unit, and wanted to bring his fans in because we know how much he means to you, as you do to him.
“As Bruce always says, ‘Live it up’ and together we plan to do just that,” concluded the statement, which was signed by his wife Emma Heming, his ex-wife Demi Moore, and his five children, Rumer, 33, Scout, 30, Tallulah, 28, Mabel, 9, and Evelyn, 7.
Willis has multiple projects completed as well in post-production, including Vendetta, Fortress: Sniper’s Eye and White Elephant. It is unclear what will happen with Fortress 3 which is currently in pre-production.
The Die Hard star’s health had been the subject of speculation online, as fans question his appearance in dozens of low-budget, critically panned films.
Gossip magazine OK! first published rumours in January 2021 that Willis had been battling memory loss, and was spending more time with his family.
That came after Willis was booted from a Los Angeles chemist for not wearing a mask during Covid-19. He later apologised, saying in a statement that it was “an error in judgement”.
But an “insider” told OK! that Willis “simply forgot” to bring the bandana hanging around his neck up to his face. “Those close to Bruce have been helping him out, and trying to maintain the secret,” they said.
They said while he had not been formally diagnosed with early-onset dementia, “he’s been waging a personal war for a number of years”.
The onset of aphasia may be related to disease or brain tumor causing degenerative damage and can affect one’s ability to communicate.
Treatment for aphasia comes in the form of speech and language therapy, where the diagnosed may learn new ways to communicate.
Page Six reports that the star was also having cognitive issues on the set of his recent films, and was unable to remember his lines before his family stepped in “to take care of him”.
There was buzz last year that Willis was having issues on productions dating back to 2020 when the busy former Pulp Fiction star was making a string of mostly B action movies with titles such as American Siege, Survive the Game, Cosmic Sin and Hard Kill.
A source told Page Six: “He was having cognitive problems, they all knew Bruce was having problems... Everybody knew, the cast and crew. His family has stepped in, they moved in to take care of him.”
The source added that Willis was using “earpieces, hearing things, for them to feed him the lines,” and “it was increasingly difficult to have him on screen.”
In addition, the source said one production was using a body double at times. “It became very apparent that he was having problems,” said the source. “So they’d use body doubles, not just for action [sequences], but for maximizing his screen time.”
The source said that for at least one project, Willis’ screen time was “whittled down” because of the issues. The source said that on the film, Willis shot for just three days.
The source said some of the films were being made closer to where Willis lived to make the productions easier. But, the source said, “it was becoming super obvious he was having trouble … he could not act anymore.”
Throughout the pandemic, Willis’ blended family — including Moore, 59, and Heming, 43 — were holed up at their Idaho compound. While the arrangement felt odd to outsiders, the G.I. Jane star said she considered Heming to be her “sister.”
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“Our children are sisters and yet there is no name for what our family connection is to one another,” Moore wrote on Instagram in March 2021 in honour of International Women’s Day. “We are mothers united, sisters bonded on this crazy adventure of life. Emma is a beautiful mother dedicated to her family, an absolutely gorgeous woman and now she can add business entrepreneur to her resume.
“Her drive, determination and passion is uplifting and the woman that she is absolutely inspiring,” she concluded.
— with Francesca Barcadi from The New York Post
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