Bruce Willis’ wife Emma Heming has revealed she made the “hard decision” to move her actor husband to a care home, as she shared an emotional update about the Die Hard star.
Speaking to American TV broadcaster Diane Sawyer for an interview on the ABC program Emma and Bruce Willis: The Unexpected Journey – A Diane Sawyer Special in August 2025, Emma said the decision was made with family in mind as Bruce continues his battle with frontotemporal dementia.
“Bruce would want that for our daughters,” the 49-year-old explained, referring to the couple’s young children, Mabel, 13, and Evelyn, 11.
Emma added that her husband would “want them to be in a home that was more tailored to their needs, not his needs”.
Bruce’s new home – in which he lives with a full-time care team – is not far from the family residence, and Emma said that Mabel and Evelyn visit their 70-year-old father regularly for breakfast and dinner.
Is Bruce Willis able to speak anymore?
During the interview, Emma also opened up about how Bruce’s language skills were “going”.
“Bruce is still very mobile. Bruce is in really great health overall. It’s just his brain that is failing him,” she explained.
The couple now has a “different way” of communicating, and Emma became emotional as she discussed the change in their dynamic with Sawyer.
“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,” she said.
Bruce Willis’ symptoms revealed
During the interview, which aired on Good Morning America, Emma – who is promoting her soon-to-be-released memoir, The Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope and Yourself on the Caregiving Path – also opened up about the “alarming” symptoms Bruce first exhibited before his diagnosis in 2022.
“For someone who is very talkative and very engaged, he was just a little more quiet,” she revealed.
“When the family would get together, he would kind of just melt a little bit.”
“It felt a little removed, very cold, not like Bruce, who was very warm and affectionate,” she said. “To [go] the complete opposite of that was alarming and scary.”
The Willis family – including Emma Heming, his ex Demi Moore, and Bruce’s daughters – first announced Bruce was suffering from aphasia – a disorder that affects a person’s ability to communicate – in 2022.
In February 2023, the family revealed his condition was more complex than that.
“Since we announced Bruce’s diagnosis of aphasia in spring 2022, Bruce’s condition has progressed, and we now have a more specific diagnosis: frontotemporal dementia (known as FTD),” the family wrote in a statement.
“Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce faces. While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis.
“FTD is a cruel disease that many of us have never heard of and can strike anyone. For people under 60, FTD is the most common form of dementia, and because getting the diagnosis can take years, FTD is likely much more prevalent than we know.
“Today there are no treatments for the disease, a reality that we hope can change in the years ahead.”
Since that time, the family – including Bruce’s daughters from his marriage to Demi, Rumer, Scout, and Tallulah- have continued to share updates on his health.
In December 2023, a source close to the family told US Weekly that the actor’s condition had worsened again.
“Bruce has good days and bad days, but in the last two months, there are many more bad days than good,” the source said.
“This experience has brought the whole family even closer together.
“No one knows how much time Bruce has left, so they’re soaking up every moment they get with him.”
The day Bruce was diagnosed
Speaking to an audience at the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement Forum in Las Vegas in May 2025, Emma relived the day she was told about Bruce’s diagnosis.
“On the day Bruce got his diagnosis, we left the doctor’s office with a pamphlet and a hollow goodbye. No plan, no guidance, no hope, just shock,” she revealed.
“The future we imagined simply vanished, and I was left trying to hold my family together, raise our two young daughters, and care for the man I love while navigating a disease I barely understood.”
Emma went on to say she felt “lost, isolated, and scared”.
“What I needed in that moment at that appointment wasn’t just medical information,” she explained. “I needed someone to look me in the eye and say, ‘This feels impossible right now, but you will find your footing. You will survive this and you will grow because of it.’”
Emma previously spoke candidly about her husband’s health in a personal essay for Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper.
After his diagnosis, Emma, who married Bruce in 2009, became a caregiver for her husband, something she said she felt a level of “guilt” about.
“I struggle with guilt, knowing I have resources that others don’t,” she wrote in the publication. “When I’m able to get out for a hike to clear my head, it’s not lost on me that not all care partners can do that.
“When what I share about our family’s journey gets press attention, I know that there are thousands of untold, unheard stories, each of them deserving of compassion and concern.
“At the same time, I see that what I share matters to others who may be struggling, and in a small way makes them feel seen and understood.
“I want people to know that when I hear from another family affected by FTD, I hear our family’s same story of grief, loss, and immense sadness echoed in theirs,” She went on.
“ It’s important to be an advocate on behalf of those families who don’t have the time, energy, or resources to advocate for themselves.”
The power of love
Speaking previously to Today, Emma revealed how her husband’s battle had changed her.
“Love, patience, resilience. So much that he’s teaching me,” she explained. “And it’s teaching (our kids) so much. How to care, how to love. It’s a beautiful thing amongst the sadness.”
At the time, Emma said the family dynamic was to be “very honest and open”.
“I wouldn’t want there to be any stigma or shame for their dad’s diagnosis or any form of dementia,” she added.
As Bruce’s battle continues, the bittersweet moments remain.
In March 2025, in an Instagram post to celebrate 16 years with Bruce, Emma shared a photo of the pair smiling and embracing.
“Today marks 16 years with the love of a lifetime. We’ve shared monumental highs and devastating lows, and through it all, we’ve built something timeless,” she wrote.
“I’m so deeply grateful for every chapter I’ve had with him and all the ones we’ll continue to write, in our language of unconditional love.”
You can read more about Bruce’s battle with dementia here.
