Emma Heming defended her decision to move her husband, actor Bruce Willis, out of the family home as he lives with frontotemporal dementia, saying the choice guarantees round-the-clock care for him and safeguards their two young daughters.
Appearing Tuesday on Good Morning America to promote her memoir The Unexpected Journey, Heming, 47, acknowledged criticism online but said the relocation was made in the family’s best interest. "[It] was the safest and best decision — not just for Bruce, but also for our two young girls," she told host Michael Strahan. "And, you know, it's really not up for a debate."
Heming said Willis, 70, now lives in a one-story house better suited to his needs and has a full-time care team, ensuring his needs are met “100% of the time.” The move, she said, also helps protect the wellbeing of their daughters, Mabel, 13, and Evelyn, 11, who continue to visit their father for breakfast and dinner and spend quality time with him.
In an ABC special, Emma and Bruce Willis: The Unexpected Journey, Heming told Diane Sawyer that the change in residence was chosen to accommodate both Willis’s condition and the family’s daily routines. "Bruce would want that for our daughters," she said. Heming described the home as "filled with love, and warmth, and care, and laughter," and said friends continue to visit, bringing energy and companionship.
Heming addressed criticism that she had been judged for seeking outside help. She said caregivers are often unfairly criticized and that people who have not lived the experience sometimes voice strong opinions. Recounting a conversation with a neurologist, she said she had a "wake-up call" when told caregivers can die before the person they are caring for. "I'm not a failure because I need help. It's okay for me to raise my hand," she said. She said one goal of her book is to give caregivers permission to care for themselves so they can continue to care for loved ones.
Willis was diagnosed in 2023 with frontotemporal dementia, a degenerative brain condition that affects language, behavior and personality. Heming said the actor is still mobile and in "really great health overall," but acknowledged that his ability to speak has declined. "Bruce is still very mobile. Bruce is in really great health overall, you know. It's just his brain that is failing him," she said. Heming added that she does not believe Willis fully "connected the dots" about his diagnosis.
Heming described early signs of the illness in Willis as subtle but alarming for a normally talkative, engaged person: he became quieter at family gatherings, began losing words and experienced a return of a childhood stutter. Frontotemporal dementia differs from Alzheimer’s disease in that memory is not typically the first function affected; instead, patients often show changes in language and personality. FTD accounts for about one in 20 dementia cases, affecting an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 Americans, compared with more than six million people living with Alzheimer’s.
Heming said the family has adapted to new ways of communicating with Willis and that she is grateful he remains present. "We have a way of communicating with him that is just a different, a different way, but I'm grateful. I'm grateful that my husband is still very much here," she said.
Willis shares three adult daughters, Rumer, 37, Scout, 34, and Tallulah, 31, with his ex-wife, Demi Moore. Heming said that decisions about Willis’s living arrangements were made with input from medical professionals and with the aim of balancing his care needs and the children's emotional safety.
The Unexpected Journey was published Sept. 9 and chronicles Heming’s experiences as a full-time caregiver and her efforts to navigate public scrutiny while providing care for Willis and raising their family.