In a touching revelation, Glenn Gordon Caron, the brilliant mind behind the iconic TV series "Moonlighting" and a close friend of Hollywood legend Bruce Willis, has opened up about the actor's ongoing struggle with frontotemporal dementia. Caron recently shared the latest on Willis's health.
Caron, speaking to the New York Post, disclosed that he makes an effort to visit the Die Hard star approximately once a month. During these visits, Caron has found some moments of recognition from Willis, particularly in the first one to three minutes of their interaction. He explained, "My sense is the first one to three minutes he knows who I am." However, Willis's ability to communicate verbally has diminished significantly. Caron noted, "He's not totally verbal; he used to be a voracious reader — he didn't want anyone to know that — and he's not reading now. All those language skills are no longer available to him, and yet he's still Bruce."
Caron, known for his work with Willis on "Moonlighting" from 1985 to 1989, emphasized the enduring connection he maintains with Willis, his wife Emma Heming Willis, and their three older children, shared with Willis's ex-wife Demi Moore. He stated, "I have tried very hard to stay in his life. He's an extraordinary person." Caron described the unique challenge of Willis's condition, given the actor's once vibrant personality, saying, "The thing that makes [his disease] so mind-blowing is [that] if you've ever spent time with Bruce Willis, there is no one who had any more joie de vivre than he. He loved life and ... just adored waking up every morning and trying to live life to its fullest."
In 2022, Willis's family publicly announced his retirement from acting due to a diagnosis of aphasia. Earlier this year, the family shared the heartbreaking news that Willis's condition had progressed to dementia.
During an appearance on the Today show last month, Emma Heming Willis provided an update on the 68-year-old actor's battle with dementia. She shared the challenges they face as a family, saying, "It's hard on the person diagnosed, it's also hard on the family. And that is no different for Bruce, or myself, or our girls. When they say this is a family disease, it really is."
Bruce Willis, celebrated for his decades of remarkable performances in film, continues to face the profound challenges posed by his health condition, as his loved ones and friends, like Glenn Gordon Caron, stand by his side.
