Bruce Willis’ wife Emma Heming says return of childhood stutter masked his decline before dementia diagnosis

Bruce Willis’ wife, Emma Heming Willis, has opened up about how an early stutter he suffered from may have obscured the early symptoms of his frontotemporal dementia (FTD).

In a new interview with City & Country Emma revealed that the 69-year-old film icon had difficulty speaking early in his cognitive decline, but she initially interpreted it as a recurrence of the “severe stuttering” he had dealt with in his teenage years.

In 2022, she and the rest of his family announced that he had been diagnosed with aphasia and would retire from acting.

The following year, the family announced that the Pulp Fiction actor had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, of which aphasia is a common symptom.

“For Bruce, it started with language,” the 46-year-old model explained in her interview, published Tuesday.

Bruce Willis’ wife Emma Heming Willis talks about how an early stutter he suffered from may have obscured the early symptoms of his frontotemporal dementia (FTD); pictured in 2018 in LA

In a new interview with Town & Country, Emma revealed that the 69-year-old film icon had trouble speaking early in his cognitive decline, but she initially interpreted it as a recurrence of the “severe stuttering” he had been dealing with. his teenage years

She said his childhood was marred by his “severe stutter” until a college theater professor opened a new world of opportunities for him.

During his acting studies, Bruce learned that the stuttering that was so prominent in his own speech would disappear almost magically when he spoke words he had memorized from a script.

“That’s what got him into acting,” Emma said.

She added that he continued to deal with the stutter throughout his life, although he developed the ability to hide it well in most situations.

However, that persistent stuttering made it difficult for her to realize that there was something seriously wrong with her husband’s language skills in the early stages of his decline.

“When his language started to change, it changed [seemed like it] was just part of a stutter, it was just Bruce,” she said. “Never in a million years would I think it would be a form of dementia for someone so young.”

In John Parker’s 1997 Bruce Willis: The Unauthorized Biography, the Die Hard actor was quoted as saying, “I could barely talk. It took me three minutes to finish a sentence,” via the Los Angeles Times. ‘But when I became another character in a play, I lost my stutter. It was phenomenal.’

Bruce was honored for his advocacy on behalf of people living with stuttering at the American Institute for Stuttering’s 2016 gala.

“When his language started to change, it changed [seemed like it] was just part of a stutter, it was just Bruce,” she said. ‘Never in a million years would I think it would be a form of dementia for someone so young’; seen with Emma (L), ex-wife Demi Moore (second from right) and daughters (L–R) Rumer, Tallulah and Scout

Willis previously said that acting helped him overcome his stutter because he could recite memorized lines without stuttering. He later worked with speech therapists in college; pictured in 2018 in LA

He was joined by a fellow stutterer, then-Vice President Joe Biden, as his wife Emma honored him at the ceremony.

In his acceptance speech, the actor revealed that he started stuttering around age 6, saying he had “no plan, no help” and was “just flailing wildly for a long time,” according to The Hollywood Reporter.

After his acting epiphany, Willis worked with speech therapists to further suppress his stuttering while attending Montclair State University in New Jersey.

In the same Town & Country interview, Emma revealed that her and Bruce’s two young daughters – Mabel, 12, and Evelyn, 10 – started noticing signs of his cognitive decline before he was officially diagnosed with dementia.

“I never tried to soften anything for them,” she said. “They grew up while Bruce deteriorated over the years. I’m not trying to protect them from it.’

She said honesty was an essential part of helping her daughters cope with their father’s deteriorating condition.

“What I learned from our therapist is that when kids ask questions, they are ready to know the answer,” she shared.

Bruce’s diagnosis is terminal, with no hope of recovery or significant improvement, but Emma didn’t hesitate to emphasize that fact to her daughters.

In the same Town & Country interview, Emma revealed that her and Bruce’s two young daughters – Mabel, 12, and Evelyn, 10 – started noticing signs of his cognitive decline before he was officially diagnosed with dementia.

Emma said she has avoided talking to their daughters about the “terminal” nature of Bruce’s condition, but they “know dad isn’t going to get better.”

‘If we could see that Bruce was struggling I would discuss it with the children so they could understand, but this disease is chronic, progressive and terminal. There is no cure,” she said. “Obviously I don’t like talking to them about the terminal side of it, and they haven’t asked.”

She added in a somber tone, “They know Dad won’t get better.”

Despite her daughters being aware of their father’s symptoms, Emma struggled to pinpoint exactly when he began suffering from FTD, due to the subtle and gradual accumulation of symptoms.

“I say FTD whispers but doesn’t shout,” she said, before explaining, “It’s hard for me to say, ‘This is where Bruce ended up, and this is where his disease started to take over.’