According to the creator of Moonlighting, Bruce Willis has lost his ‘joie de vivre
He remains Bruce's creation, the creator stated, even though the actor no longer possesses the 'language skills.
Glenn Gordon Caron, the creator of Moonlighting, has revealed that Bruce Willis’s struggle with dementia has left him “not entirely verbal”. Caron also lamented that the zest for life Willis was once known for has now faded.
Last February, the 68-year-old star of Die Hard saw his family disclose his diagnosis of frontotemporal dementia (FTD). This revelation came almost a year after they announced he would be “stepping away” from acting due to an initial diagnosis of aphasia.
Since Willis’s health deterioration was made public in March 2022, Caron shared with The New York Post in a recent interview that he has made an effort to visit the actor every month.
“I’m not always that successful, but I make an attempt, and I do have conversations with him and his wife, Emma Heming Willis. I maintain a casual relationship with his three older children,” Caron mentioned. “I’ve put in a lot of effort to remain a part of his life.”
The duo collaborated on the five-season drama series, Moonlighting, which aired from 1985 to 1989, and have remained close friends.
“What’s truly astonishing about [his condition] is that if you’ve ever spent time with Bruce Willis, there’s no one who embraced life with more joie de vivre than he did,” added the creator of Medium. “He adored life and relished waking up each morning, eager to live life to the fullest.”
Reflecting on his visits with the star of The Sixth Sense, Caron noted, “My impression is that for the first one to three minutes, he recognises who I am. While he’s not entirely verbal, he used to be an avid reader – a fact he didn’t want anyone to know – and sadly, he’s no longer able to read.”
“Despite losing his language skills, he remains unmistakably Bruce,” he commented, “but the zest for life has faded.”
Before Willis’s condition progressed to its current state of near-incommunicability, Caron mentioned that he was able to convey his desire to see their popular ABC series back in the public eye.
For the very first time, the entire show is now accessible for streaming on Hulu in the US.
“This holds great significance for him,” Caron added.
Willis co-starred in the comedy-drama alongside Cybill Shepherd. His portrayal of the sharp-witted David Addison at the Blue Moon Detective Agency earned him his initial Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actor in 1987.
The Armageddon star’s wife, Emma Heming Willis, has been actively raising awareness about dementia on social media. She frequently hosts live discussions on Instagram with healthcare experts and fellow caregivers.
Upon initially disclosing Willis’s diagnosis, Emma, in a joint statement with the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration, described it as “the most prevalent form of dementia”.
The couple, married since 2009, are parents to two young children: Mabel, aged six, and Evelyn, aged four. Willis also has three older children – Rumer, 35, Scout LaRue, 32, and Tallulah, 29 – from his previous marriage to actor Demi Moore.
