Bruce Willis Health Update: How Actor's Christmas Celebrations Changed Since Dementia Diagnosis

The holidays have changed profoundly for Bruce Willis and his entire family ever since he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia in 2023. The actor, who used to be at the centre of his family's Christmas celebrations, now has to take a backseat.

In a poignant new essay, Willis' wife, Emma Heming, opened up about the ache of celebrating the holidays since her husband's diagnosis. She recalled how Willis used to be the heart of their festive traditions. 'For me, the holidays carry memories of Bruce being at the center of it all. He loved this time of year—the energy, family time, the traditions. He was the pancake-maker, the get-out-in-the-snow-with-the-kids guy, the steady presence moving through the house as the day unfolded,' she wrote (via InStyle).

A New Reality Filled With Grief

Heming explained how dementia has created space between some of Willis' memories of the past, but stressed that the illness doesn't make the actor forget everything. Willis' wife also talked about the grief of seeing all the changes in her husband ever since his diagnosis.

'[Grief] can arrive while pulling decorations out of storage, wrapping gifts...or in the middle of a room full of people, or in the quiet moment when everyone else has gone to bed,' she wrote.

At one point, Heming admitted to cursing Willis's name not because she is mad at him but because she missed the way he was in charge of the holidays. Now, Heming needs to step up for her two daughters and the rest of Willis's children with ex-wife, Demi Moore.

The First Alarming Signs

Last summer, Heming sat down for an interview with Diane Sawyer on Good Morning America, where she talked about her husband. She admitted that Willis' affectionate and warm personality changed in the past two years. But every now and then, Willis would laugh the same way that he used to or his eyes would twinkle just like how his wife remembers, and Heming will get transported back to time. 'And it's just hard to see, because as quickly as those moments appear, then it goes,' she said.

Prior to his diagnosis, Heming already saw changes in her husband. She said that Willis was known for being very talkative, but at some point, he became awfully quiet. 'For someone who was very talkative and very engaged, he was just a little more quiet. He felt a little removed, very cold. Not like Bruce, who is very warm and affectionate. To go in the complete opposite of that was alarming and scary,' she said.

Demi Moore Praises Emma's 'Masterful Strength'

Other than Heming, Willis's dementia diagnosis is also being dealt with by his ex-wife, Demi Moore. On the Oprah podcast, Moore had nothing but wonderful things to say about Heming.

'I have so much compassion for Emma in this, being a young woman. There's no way that anybody could have anticipated where this was going to go. And I really think she's done a masterful job. She has been so dedicated to forging the right path. She's had equal amounts of fear and strength and courage in navigating this,' she said (via The Hollywood Reporter).

Willis and Moore divorced in October 2000, and the Paradise City actor wed Heming in 2009.