Emma Heming Willis has given her first interview about her husband’s illness. The situation on TV becomes emotional – and the 45-year-old finds stirring words.
Bruce Willis suffers from a special form of dementia. In March 2022 he made this public together and with the help of his family. He suffers from aphasia, a specific language disorder. Little by little, the Hollywood star is losing the ability to express himself. For the first time since this diagnosis became known, Willis’ wife Emma Heming spoke about the situation in a television interview.
On the US TV show “Today” she answers questions from presenter Hoda Kotb. Emma Heming Willis, who has two daughters with the actor, appears very emotional during the conversation. She is obviously struggling not to burst into tears. With moist eyes, she says, among other things: “Dementia is hard. It’s hard for the person diagnosed with it, but also for the family. And that’s no different for Bruce, for me or for our girls. When they say “That this is a family disease, then it really is.”
The 45-year-old’s answer to the question of whether Bruce Willis was aware of his situation was particularly heartbreaking. She doesn’t know: “It’s hard to say,” says Emma Heming. The now 68-year-old actor may not be able to assess his state of health himself – and may not even notice how his linguistic and cognitive skills are deteriorating.
“That didn’t make it any less painful.”
It was a “curse and a blessing” to get the diagnosis for Bruce Willis, his wife continues. “I finally understood what was happening to him and was able to move on to the phase of acceptance. But that didn’t make it any less painful.” Nevertheless, it made dealing with him and the illness “easier.”
In February 2023, Bruce Willis’ family shared another update on his health. This time they let it be known that his condition had “worsened” and he had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia. With this brain disease, memory is less affected than language processing.
This is a challenge for the whole family – including for the daughters Mabel and Evelyn, who were born in 2012 and 2014. Nevertheless, they could now deal with the situation better. Bruce Willis teaches his girls “so much and how to care and love, and that’s really a beautiful thing in the midst of sadness,” reports Emma Heming Willis.