In an emotional revelation, Bruce Willis’ wife, Emma Heming Willis, has shared the first sign that suggested her husband was beginning to suffer from frontotemporal dementia (FTD). As the family continues to navigate life with the diagnosis, Emma has opened up about the initial indications that something was wrong and how it has impacted their lives. The iconic action star, beloved for his roles in films like Die Hard, retired from acting in 2022 after a diagnosis of aphasia. Which later progressed to FTD.

Emma Heming Willis recalls that it all started with subtle changes in Bruce’s language. At first, she and the rest of the family didn’t think much of it. Bruce had managed a childhood stutter his entire life. In an interview with Town & Country, Emma explained, “For Bruce, it started with language.

He had a severe stutter as a child. He went to college, and there was a theatre teacher who said, ‘I’ve got something that’s going to help you.’ From that class, Bruce realized that he could memorize a script and be able to say it without stuttering. That’s what propelled him into acting.”

Despite the success Bruce achieved in overcoming his stutter through acting, Emma noticed that his language skills began to change in ways that were hard to ignore. But because Bruce had always been able to mask his stutter, the family initially dismissed the signs as part of his natural speech pattern.

Emma shared, “As his language started changing, it seemed like it was just a part of a stutter. It was just Bruce. Never in a million years would I think it would be a form of dementia for someone so young.”