Emma Heming Willis has broken down in tears as she gave an emotional update on her husband Bruce Willis's dementia battle, revealing that his "brain is failing him" and his "language is going". In an ABC special with Diane Sawyer, the 47-year-old said the actor remained mobile and in good overall health, but the condition had taken a heavy toll on his communication.
"Bruce is still very mobile. Bruce is in really great health overall, you know," she said. "It's just his brain that is failing him. The language is going. We've learned to adapt and we have a way of communicating with him, which is just a different way."
Heming Willis described fleeting moments of her husband's old self, including his hearty laugh and a twinkle in his eye, but said these moments quickly pass. She also recalled early warning signs, noting that the once talkative and engaged star became quieter and withdrawn at family gatherings, appearing "a little removed, a little cold, not like Bruce who was very warm and very affectionate".
Willis, 70, was diagnosed with aphasia in 2022 and frontotemporal dementia a year later. Heming Willis said she was "so panicked" when she first heard the diagnosis and remembered "hearing it and not hearing anything else". The couple share daughters Mabel, 13, and Evelyn, 11, while Willis also has three daughters from his previous marriage to Demi Moore.
The ABC special, Emma & Bruce Willis: The Unexpected Journey, is available to watch on Hulu and Disney+. Heming Willis has also written a book of the same name, due out on September 9, documenting her husband's health journey and her role as his caregiver.
