Bruce Willis, the legendary actor known for Die Hard, Pulp Fiction, and Unbreakable; has been diagnosed with aphasia and will be "stepping away" from acting due to the medical condition, his family announced in a joint statement shared on social media yesterday.
"To Bruce’s amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities. As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him."
Aphasia is an inability to comprehend or formulate language because of damage to specific brain regions, making it more difficult to communicate, and is generally caused by a stroke and/or head trauma. According to the Los Angeles Times, his co-workers had suspected his declining mental acuity in recent years, when he was frequently unable to work longer than 2-3 days at a time, for only a few hours each day. He still managed to appear in 22 films in a four-year time span.
The 67-year-old actor is one of Hollywood's most accomplished stars, having gotten his big break with the comedy series Moonlighting in the late '80s before becoming a full-fledged action star with Die Hard. In addition to starring in four sequels to the hit 1988 action film, he went on to headline The Last Boy Scout, Death Becomes Her, Pulp Fiction, 12 Monkeys, The Fifth Element, Armageddon, The Sixth Sense, The Whole Nine Yards, Unbreakable, Sin City, Red, Moonrise Kingdom, and Glass, amongst countless other classics.
M. Night Shyamalan, with whom he shared some of his biggest critical successes, also sent his love to Willis and his family following the news.
Read the full statement from his family below:
"To Bruce’s amazing supporters, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities. As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him.
This is a really challenging time for our family and we are so appreciative of your continued love, compassion and support. We are moving through this as a strong family unit, and wanted to bring his fans in because we know how much he means to you, as you do to him.
As Bruce always says, “Live it up” and together we plan to do just that.
Love, Emma, Demi, Rumer, Scout, Tallulah, Mabel, & Evelyn"