Bruce Willis is receiving round-the-clock professional care at a separate residence as he continues to live with frontotemporal dementia, his wife Emma Heming Willis shared in the ABC special Emma and Bruce Willis: The Unexpected Journey – A Diane Sawyer Special, which aired on August 26.
Emma, 49, explained that Willis, 70, is supported by full-time caregivers in a nearby house, while she stays with their daughters Mabel, 13, and Evelyn, 11. She said this arrangement was made with Bruce’s wishes in mind, adding, “He would want our girls to have a home that suits them, not one built around his condition.”
Although they live separately, the family spends time together daily, often joining Bruce for breakfast and dinner. Emma recalled the first hints of his illness, noting how he became unusually withdrawn and stopped enjoying routines he once loved, like school drop-offs. She admitted the changes were frightening but said the decision to maintain separate households provides stability both for him and for their children. She described his space as calm, structured and easier for him to manage, though she called the choice one of the toughest she has made as a caregiver.
The family disclosed Willis’s frontotemporal dementia diagnosis in 2023. The disease affects language, behaviour and personality. Emma revealed that the most difficult part for him has been losing the ability to communicate, which has pushed the family to find new ways to connect with him beyond words.
In the beginning, Emma thought she would have to shoulder caregiving entirely by herself. She often stayed awake at night to watch over him and kept him away from social events that could overwhelm him, trying to protect his comfort as his condition advanced.
Willis and Heming married in 2009. Before that, the Die Hard star was married to actress Demi Moore, with whom he has three adult daughters: Rumer, 37, Scout, 34, and Tallulah, 31. With Emma, he shares two younger daughters, Mabel and Evelyn, who continue to spend regular time with their father despite the challenges of his illness.
