Rosario Monachino
Bruce Willis’ close friend has revealed that the Die Hard actor is no longer ‘totally verbal’ in a heartbreaking health update following his dementia diagnosis.
The legendary Hollywood star, 68, is adored by fans for his work in blockbuster films such as Pulp Fiction, Armageddon and The Sixth Sense.
But Willis was forced to retire from the industry after experiencing difficulties on set – with reports he wasn’t fully aware of his surroundings and had to be fed his lines through an earpiece.
Now one of his oldest friends has provided fans with an update on The Fifth Element actor’s health – and sadly, it isn’t a positive one.
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Willis was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) – an uncommon form of the disease that can cause problems with behaviour and language, as per the NHS.
It affects the front and side of the brain which usually develops slowly and gets gradually worse over several years.
Willis’ friend Glenn Gordon Caron was the creator of the American comedy-drama Moonlighting – the show that helped make Willis a household name.
He played the wisecracking detective David Addison for all five seasons and would go on to win numerous awards, including an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series.
Speaking to the New York Post to promote the hit show being added to Hulu, Caron gave an update on the actor’s condition.
Caron, 69, told the outlet: “I know he’s really happy that the show is going to be available for people, even though he can’t tell me that.
“When I got to spend time with him we talked about it and I know he’s excited.
“The process [to get Moonlighting onto Hulu] has taken quite a while and Bruce’s disease is a progressive disease, so I was able to communicate with him, before the disease rendered him as incommunicative as he is now, about hoping to get the show back in front of people.
“I know it means a lot to him.”
He continues to say that he does speak to Willis’ wife Emma Heming Willis and has a ‘casual relationship’ with his three older children Rumer, 35, Scout, 32, and Tallulah, 29.
Caron, who is also known for his work on the mystery series Medium, also told the publisher: “The thing that makes [his disease] so mind-blowing is [that] if you’ve ever spent time with Bruce Willis, there is no one who had any more joie de vivre [joy of living] than he.
“He loved life and… just adored waking up every morning and trying to live life to its fullest.”
He explained that he tries to visit Willis once a month and believes that the Unbreakable actor still recognises him.
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“My sense is the first one to three minutes he knows who I am,” he shares.
“He’s not totally verbal; he used to be a voracious reader — he didn’t want anyone to know that — and he’s not reading now. All those language skills are no longer available to him, and yet he’s still Bruce.”
“When you’re with him you know that he’s Bruce and you’re grateful that he’s there, but the joie de vivre is gone.”
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