Bruce Willis was pictured holding his carer’s hand during a rare public outing on Thursday, amid his battle with frontotemporal dementia.
The Die Hard actor, 70, enjoyed a beachfront stroll in Los Angeles, and appeared to be in good spirits, flashing a smile at one point.
The Hollywood icon — who has been moved out of his family home to a separate one-story house where he has a 24/7 care team — kept hold of his carer’s hand as they walked together.
During one moment, he reached his other hand for the railing, appearing to use it for support.
The sighting comes a day after his ex-wife, Demi Moore, 62, attended a star-studded charity benefit was held in his honor in New York City. Willis was not in attendance, and has mostly stayed out of the spotlight since his diagnosis.
The actor’s family announced in 2023 that he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a form of dementia that causes a gradual decline in the areas of the brain linked to personality and language abilities.
Bruce Willis, 70, was pictured holding his carer’s hand during a rare public outing on Thursday, amid his battle with dementia
The Hollywood icon — who has been moved out of his family home to a separate one-story house where he has a 24/7 care team — kept hold of his carer’s hand as they walked together
The Die Hard actor stepped out for a sunny stroll along the beach in Los Angeles
During Thursday’s outing, Willis sported a casual look, wearing a dark grey t-shirt, khaki pants, and grey sneakers.
He shielded his head with a blue baseball hat and wore a pair of black sunglasses.
The actor and his carer later enjoyed a chat as they took in the ocean views.
In August, his wife, Emma Heming Willis, 47 — with whom he shares daughters Mabel, 13, and Evelyn, 11 — said in an interview with Diane Sawyer that Willis has been moved into a separate one-story home away from their main house, where he has a full-time care team.
Willis also shares older daughters Rumer, 37, Scout, 34, and Tallulah, 31 with ex-wife Demi, to whom he was married from 1987 to 2000.
A separate family insider recently told the Daily Mail: ‘He is going downhill fast.’
Willis’s wife joined his ex at the benefit in his honor on Wednesday, weeks after sharing a heartbreaking update on how their young daughters are coping with his declining health.
‘I think they’re doing well, all things considered but it’s hard,’ she told Vogue Australia in October.
‘They grieve, they miss their dad so much. He’s missing important milestones, that’s tough for them – but kids are resilient, [although] I used to hate hearing that because people didn’t understand what we were walking through.’
She added: ‘I don’t know if my kids will ever bounce back, but they’re learning and so am I.’
Last month, sources close to the family revealed Heming Willis is struggling to not only help manage the star’s rapidly deteriorating condition but also manage his hefty estate.
He appeared to be in good spirits, flashing a smile as he walked
During one moment, he reached his other hand for the railing, appearing to use it for support
He and his carer later enjoyed a chat as they took in the ocean views
Willis has mostly stayed out of the spotlight since his diagnosis
During Thursday’s outing, Willis sported a casual look, wearing a dark grey t-shirt, khaki pants, and grey sneakers
He shielded his head with a blue baseball hat and wore a pair of black sunglasses
The actor’s family announced in 2023 that he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a form of dementia that causes a gradual decline in the areas of the brain linked to personality and language abilities
Willis’s wife Emma Heming Willis, 47, recently shared a heartbreaking update on how their young daughters — Mabel, 13, and Evelyn, 11 — are coping with his declining health
‘They grieve, they miss their dad so much. He’s missing important milestones, that’s tough for them – but kids are resilient,’ she told Vogue Australia
She added: ‘I don’t know if my kids will ever bounce back, but they’re learning and so am I’
Heming Willis said moving her husband into a separate residence was the best decision for their family
‘But among the sadness and discomfort, it was the right move — for him, for our girls, for me. Ultimately, I could get back to being his wife. And that’s such a gift,’ she shared
Emma added it has given Bruce more independence, giving him the chance to reconnect with friends and family
The source said: ‘Taking care of Bruce isn’t just about keeping up his spirits and making sure he can physically get through the day. It also involves looking after the massive fortune he accrued as an A-list movie star.’
Heming Willis herself said moving her husband into a separate residence was the best decision for their family.
She said moving Bruce into a new home where is supported by carers 24/7, has allowed her to go back to just being his wife.
Emma told The Sunday Times: ‘It was of the hardest decisions I ever had to make.’
‘But among the sadness and discomfort, it was the right move — for him, for our girls, for me. Ultimately, I could get back to being his wife. And that’s such a gift.’
Emma added it has also given Bruce more independence, giving him the chance to reconnect with friends and family.
She explained: ‘It’s made such a difference for more friends and family to have their own experience with him without it being my home, without me hovering, or my anxiety of how to manage the guest and their expectations, and then have to see their reactions – their sadness at what is.’
Willis has an estimated $250million in the bank, which his wife is reportedly now in charge of, as his FTD is too advanced for him to manage it with his team.
FTD eats away at the parts of the brain that control language, behavior and personality. Unlike Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, patients don’t lose their memory immediately but instead undergo personality changes.
The disease also attacks areas of the brain responsible for judgment, impulse control and decision-making, leading patients vulnerable to mismanaging their finances, which adds an extra burden on to caregivers.
His wife recently revealed the ‘wake-up call’ that forced her to rethink her husband’s dementia care.
This week, she appeared on the HealSquad podcast with actress Maria Menounos to discuss caring for her husband.
She said Willis’ neurologist warned her of a grim statistic: about 30 percent of caregivers die before their loved ones.
This could be because 40 percent of caregivers don’t schedule their own medical appointments because they don’t have enough support to care for their loved one.
Bruce has been surrounded by his close-knit blended family, including both his wives and all his daughters, who have rallied around him to help him cope with his health struggles
The Hollywood legend has starred in numerous iconic films, including Die Hard (seen in a still)
Chronic stress from caregiving can also exacerbate pre-existing conditions by triggering the body’s ‘fight-or-flight’ response, which leads to inflammation, high blood pressure and an increased risk of heart attack.
Heming Willis said: ‘I really needed to hear that to wake up.’
‘We are making appointments for everyone, handling, doing this. We are doing so much.’
Heming Willis said: ‘Caregivers need to know that in order to make it sustainable, you must care for yourself, that it is not selfish, it is self-preserving.’
