Emma Heming Willis is opening up about her husband Bruce Willis’ health.
On the ABC special “Emma & Bruce Willis: The Unexpected Journey,” Emma sat down with Diane Sawyer to detail Bruce’s last few years since he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia.
Emma told Sawyer that remembering Bruce’s initial diagnosis has been hard for her.
“It’s really gray for me where Bruce’s disease started to come in. He always loved taking the girls to school and then those school runs just started to not happen as much, and I thought that is so weird,” she said. Emma wouldn’t say anything to her husband and opted to “just step in and do it” instead.
BRUCE WILLIS’ WIFE FELT ‘LOST AND ISOLATED’ CARING FOR HIM AFTER DEVASTATING DEMENTIA DIAGNOSIS
The actor’s wife first noticed signs of his health decline long before his diagnosis. Emma noticed the “alarming” warning signs when Bruce’s “warm” personality began to change, and he started skipping family events.
“For someone who is very talkative and very engaged, he was just a little more quiet. When the family would get together, he would kind of just melt a little bit,” she told Sawyer.
“It felt a little removed, very cold, not like Bruce, who was very warm and affectionate,” she continued. “To [go] the complete opposite of that was alarming and scary.”
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She initially questioned if Bruce’s health decline was due to partially losing his hearing while making “Die Hard” when he “wasn’t wearing protective ear covering. He was firing one of these guns underneath a table. And, it blew out a big percentage of his hearing,” Emma said.
She thought maybe they were having some miscommunication because he wasn’t hearing what she was saying.
Emma shared that in the early stages of Bruce’s disease, she “didn’t understand what was happening” and wondered how she could “remain in a marriage that doesn’t feel like what we had. It doesn’t feel like a marriage anymore.”
She said she had those conversations with him, asking him “are you OK?” and he dismissed it. “It just got very bumpy and very confusing,” Emma told Sawyer.
In March 2022, it was announced that Willis would be “stepping away” from his acting career due to an aphasia diagnosis. It was later announced that he had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, also known as FTD.
FTD is “the result of damage to neurons in the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain,” according to the National Institute on Aging. “Many possible symptoms can result, including unusual behaviors, emotional problems, trouble communicating, difficulty with work, or difficulty with walking.”
Emma recalled the moment doctors informed her there was no cure for Bruce’s disease.
“To leave there with nothing, just noting, a diagnosis I couldn’t pronounce, I didn’t understand what it was … I was so panicked. And just hearing it and not hearing anything else, it was like I was free-falling,” Emma said.
When Sawyer asked if there are days when she sees him as he used to be, she said, “We get moments. It’s his laugh, right? Like, he has such, like, a hearty laugh. And, you know, sometimes you’ll see that twinkle in his eye, or that smirk, and, you know, I just get, like, transported. And it’s just hard to see, because as quickly as those moments appear, then it goes. It’s hard. But I’m grateful. I’m grateful that my husband is still very much here.”
Emma will release her book,”The Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope, and Yourself on the Caregiving Path,” this September. She told Sawyer the book is dedicated to Bruce and their two daughters.
During the interview, Emma read the dedication in the book to Bruce, and fought back tears while speaking to Sawyer.
“To Bruce, the heart of my travels, the echo to my footsteps, I love that endures beyond every bend in the road. Your spirit is my constant companion. And for every care partner navigating this unexpected journey may you find solace in knowing you are not alone and hope in the moments that remind you to put one foot in front of the other. This book is for you,” she read.
Emma told Sawyer she informed her two daughters, Mabel and Evelyn, early-on about their father’s diagnosis. She noted to Sawyer that he is seemingly unaware of his condition.
“Bruce is still very mobile, Bruce is in great health overall, it’s just his brain that is failing him,” Emma stated. She feels that he recognizes her still though.
“I know he does,” Emma shared. “When we are with him he lights up. Right? He’s holding our hands. We’re kissing him, we’re hugging him. He is reciprocating. You know, he is into it and so that’s all I need. I don’t need him to know I am his wife. We were married on this day and this is what it – I don’t need any of that. I just want to feel that I have a connection with him and I do.”
One of “the hardest decisions” Emma had to make was buying a one-story home next to hers for Bruce to live in with professional caregivers. She told Sawyer that she visits him in the morning and at night.
“I knew first and foremost Bruce would want that for our daughters. He would want them to be in a home that was more tailored to their needs, not his needs. We’re there a lot. It’s our second home, so [the] girls have their things there. It is a house that is filled with love and warmth and care and laughter, and it’s been beautiful to see that. To see how many of Bruce’s friends continue to show up for him and they bring in life and fun,” Emma said.
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Bruce married Emma at their home in Turks and Caicos in March 2009, and they have two daughters. The actor was previously married to Demi Moore for 12 years, and the friendly exes have three daughters together: Rumer, Scout and Tallulah.
The final question Sawyer asked Emma was what she would like to ask Bruce if he was able to understand the situation they are in.
“Just how he’s doing. If he’s OK, if he feels OK. If there’s anything that we could do to support him better. I would really love to know that. If he’s scared, if he’s ever worried. I just would love to be able to just have a conversation with him,” Emma said.
Fox News Digital’s Christina Dugan Ramirez contributed to this report
