Jan. 28, 2026, 11:33 a.m. ET
Bruce Willis‘ wife is sharing new insights into her husband’s dementia battle.
Emma Heming Willis, the wife of the “Die Hard” actor, opened up about his frontotemporal dementia diagnosis in a new interview on the “Conversations with Cam” podcast, released Wednesday, Jan. 28.
Heming Willis, 47, shared on the podcast that he is not aware that he has dementia.
“There’s this neurological condition that comes with FTD, and other types of dementia as well, called anosognosia, where your brain can’t identify what is happening to it,” she explained. “So where people think this might be denial – like they don’t want to go to the doctor, because they’re like ‘I’m fine, I’m fine’ – actually, this is the anosognosia that comes into play.”
She continued, “I think that’s the blessing and the curse of this. Bruce never tapped in. He never connected the dots that he had this disease, and I’m really happy about that. I’m really happy that he doesn’t know about it.”
What is anosognosia?
According to the Cleveland Clinic, anosognosia is a condition “where you can’t recognize other health conditions or problems that you have,” and it is most common with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia.
“Your brain keeps track of what’s going on with your body using a ‘self-image,'” the clinic says. “If you have an injury, your body updates your self-image to reflect that, and it will keep updating as your body heals. People with anosognosia have damage in the areas of their brain that update their self-image.”
Bruce Willis’ family first announced he was stepping away from acting in 2022 after being diagnosed with aphasia. He later received a second diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia, which according to the Mayo Clinic is a term for a group of diseases that affect the brain’s frontal and temporal lobes. Frontotemporal dementia can lead to the loss of speech, as well as behavioral changes, per the clinic.
Bruce Willis is ‘present’ but ‘different,’ wife says
Heming Willis explained on “Conversations with Cam” that the “Sixth Sense” actor has dealt with issues with language more so than behavior. “I don’t want to say that we’re lucky with that, but from what I hear about the behavioral symptoms, they’re really hard,” she said.
She also noted that her husband has his memory and is aware of who she and their children are. She and Willis have been married since 2009, and they have two children. Willis also shares three daughters with his ex-wife, Demi Moore.
“He’s still very much present in his body,” Heming Willis said, adding, “He has a way of connecting with me [and] our children that might not be the same as you would connect with your loved one, but it’s still very beautiful. It’s still very meaningful. It’s just different.”
Since her husband’s diagnosis, Heming Willis has become an advocate for caregivers, and she published a book, “The Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope, and Yourself on the Caregiving Path,” in September.
In an ABC special last year, Heming Willis shared that her husband is now living in a separate home. She described this as “one of the hardest decisions” to make, but said she knew “Bruce would want that for our daughters,” adding, “He would want them to be in a home that was more tailored to their needs, not his needs.”
Heming Willis opened up further about this decision on “Conversations with Cam” and reiterated that it was the right choice for the family.
“Bruce wouldn’t want his two young daughters to be clouded by his disease,” she said. “I know that. They weren’t having sleepovers, playdates. We weren’t inviting people over. I isolated all of us, and that was just a really hard time. So the decision didn’t come lightly, but it was the right one for our family. And I can see the benefits from it. Our children are thriving, and so is Bruce.”
