Bruce Willis' celebrity friends have reportedly stopped visiting as his health declines amid his battle with frontotemporal dementia. The 71-year-old actor now lives in a separate, single-storey home with round-the-clock carers, according to claims.
Willis was diagnosed with the condition in February 2023 and has largely stepped back from public life as the disease takes hold. Earlier this year, his wife Emma Heming Willis said the Die Hard star "doesn't know" he has the degenerative disease, as one of the neurological symptoms includes anosognosia, which prevents a person from recognising their own illness.
Health Deterioration and Isolation
A source told the DailyMail that Willis has declined "a lot mentally" and is "living in his own world" but "doesn't talk about it or even complain much." They added: "If you look at him he appears like a healthy middle-aged man. He knows his life is different, but he doesn't think it is that different."
It is claimed many of his Hollywood pals no longer keep in close contact. "That is how the business is," the source went on. "Once you stop working, all those glam friends forget you. In this town, the A-listers are saying, 'Bruce who?'"
Family Support Amid Decline
While some former co-stars may have kept a distance, Willis' close-knit family, including his ex-wife Demi Moore with whom he shares three children, are rallying around him during this challenging time. His family announced his retirement from acting right before his condition had progressed.
Frontotemporal dementia affects areas of the brain linked to language, behaviour and personality. Unlike Alzheimer's disease, memory loss is not always the first symptom. FTD is a rare form of dementia that affects the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain. Willis' version primarily affects his ability to communicate and his language skills.
Daughter's Candid Update
His eldest daughter, Rumer Willis, recently spoke candidly during an Instagram Q&A, revealing that her father does not always recognise her since his diagnosis. "People always ask me this question and I think it's a hard one to answer," she said tearfully. "The truth is that anybody with FTD is not doing great, but he's doing okay in terms of somebody who is dealing with frontotemporal dementia."
Rumer explained that the usual ways people measure wellbeing no longer apply. She added: "The only way that I feel like I can answer that in a way that was like 'he's doing great' is like, those parameters don't really work anymore in my mind."
