Bruce Willis‘s wife, Emma Heming Willis, has shared an emotional holiday update about the actor two years after he was diagnosed with dementia. Willis retired from acting in 2022 due to aphasia, leading to his retirement from acting. He was later diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2023. Since then, his family has offered regular updates on his condition.
Now, Emma Heming Willis has offered an update about her husband to People at the End Well 2025 conference in Los Angeles. At the event, which highlights topics surrounding end-of-life, she explained what it would be like to celebrate Christmas with the actor. She explained that “It’s joyous. It’s just different,” and how the family adapted to their new circumstances:
Bruce loved Christmas and we love celebrating it with him. It just looks different, so we’ve kind of adapted to that.
In addition, she explained how “life goes on” even as her and the Willis family have come together to support him. She offered words of encouragement surrounding both her husband and families who have loved ones with dementia, explaining how joy still exists, even if it doesn’t look the same as before. See what Heming Willis had to say below:
You have to learn and adapt and make new memories, bring in the same traditions that you had before. Life goes on. It just goes on. Dementia is hard, but there is still joy in it. I think it’s important that we don’t paint such a negative picture around dementia. We are still laughing. There is still joy. It just looks different.
Alongside Heming Willis, the pair have two daughters, 13-year-old Mabel Ray Willis and 11-year-old Evelyn Penn Willis. The actor is also surrounded by his three other children with ex-wife Demi Moore, those being 37-year-old Rumer Glenn Willis, 34-year-old Scout LaRue Willis, and 31-year-old Talluah Belle Willis. Because of his condition, he has a full-time care team and his own living space.
Bruce Willis’ best movies will continue to be his legacy, but regular updates from Hemming Willis emphasize how the family remains strong together. Her attendance at End Well involved raising awareness of the type of dementia Willis has, something she also wrote about in her book The Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope, and Yourself on the Caregiving Path.
The holiday update about Willis comes not long after his daughter, Rumer, offered a separate update about her father’s condition. She stated in an Instagram Q&A session that he was doing as well as someone with frontotemporal dementia could be doing. Both updates emphasize his condition, but also that he’s being taken care of by loved ones.
With this update so close to Christmas, Willis will continue to be surrounded by those he loves as the holiday season approaches. As he continues to live with his condition, the people around him will also make sure to care for him. As Heming Willis’ statement indicates, he’ll continue to be loved for the rest of his days.
- Birthdate
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March 19, 1955
- Birthplace
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Idar-Oberstein, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
- Height
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6 feet 0 inches
- Professions
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Actor, Producer, Musician
