Bruce Willis was photographed riding through Los Angeles on Thursday as his wife, Emma Heming Willis, disclosed that the actor has been moved into a separate residence where a round-the-clock care team is overseeing his needs.
Willis, 70, who was diagnosed in 2023 with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), appeared in good spirits in images published by a U.K. tabloid, wearing black sunglasses while seated in the front passenger seat as the car was driven to a car wash and the driver sipped coffee.
Emma Heming Willis wrote in her new book, The Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope, and Yourself on the Caregiving Path, that moving her husband into a separate home was one of the hardest decisions she has faced. She described telling their daughters, Mabel, 13, and Evelyn, 11, that their father’s care needs had changed and that a different living arrangement would better meet his daily requirements while allowing the children more freedom and normalcy.
"We’ve come to a point in Daddy’s disease where the care he requires is changing. It has to be more tailored to his every need," she wrote, according to passages reported by media outlets. She said she tried to soften the conversation by describing the new residence as a "second home" where the girls could keep personal items and visit any time.
Heming Willis, who has largely taken on the role of primary caregiver and spokesperson for the family since her husband’s diagnosis, described the early period after receiving the diagnosis as isolating and traumatic. She told People she initially heard little from physicians beyond basic information and a pamphlet, and said she spent time researching the disease herself. In the book she said she wrote "the book that I wish someone had handed me on the day we received the diagnosis" to help other families navigating neurodegenerative illness.
Frontotemporal dementia is a group of disorders that affect the frontal and temporal lobes of the brain and can alter language, behavior and personality. Willis has stepped back from acting since his diagnosis.
Emma Heming Willis has documented the family’s process of adapting to the diagnosis and arranging care, saying the decision to move her husband to a tailored residence was intended to ensure his safety and overall well-being while enabling their children to have more typical childhood experiences. She acknowledged the move was painful and that it has been an ongoing emotional challenge.
A family source told the Daily Mail that Willis has been "going downhill fast" and that he does not always recognize some faces; the source said members of his blended family have been spending time with him. Willis’s daughters from his previous marriage to Demi Moore — Rumer, 37, Scout, 34, and Tallulah, 31 — have also been reported to be part of the family’s support network.
Heming Willis has said she found purpose in connecting with medical experts and other caregivers and in speaking publicly to raise awareness about early diagnosis and support options. In her accounts she urged families to seek medical attention sooner and to pursue clinical trials when appropriate.
Representatives for Willis did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The photographs and Heming Willis’s memoir bring the private, ongoing adjustments of a high-profile family into public view as they contend with a progressive neurological condition. Her book frames the experience as a guide for caregivers and aims to provide practical steps and emotional context for others facing similar diagnoses.