Bruce Willis Retires From Work After Diagnosed With Aphasia

Bruce WillisThe actor’s family announced his retirement from the profession after he was diagnosed with aphasia, a language disorder caused by brain damage that affects a person’s ability to communicate. And members of the Willis family published a joint statement on social media, announcing the actress’ retirement.

“To the amazing Bruce fans, as a family we wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has some health issues and was recently diagnosed with aphasia, which affects his cognitive abilities,” the statement read. “As a result of this and with a lot of attention, Bruce is walking away from a career that meant so much to him.”

“This is a challenging time for our family and we deeply appreciate your continued love, sympathy and support,” the statement continues. “We are moving through this as a strong family unit, and we wanted to attract his fans 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.”

diverse A representative of Bruce Willis is contacted for further comment, but his team has no further statement to make at this time other than his family’s words below.

Willis’ acting career began in the early 1980s with uncredited roles in films such as “The Verdict” by Sidney Lumet. His career exploded later that decade thanks to his starring role opposite Cybele Shepherd in the ABC series “Moonlighting” and his performance as John McClain in the 1988 action film “Die Hard,” which gave Willis his first major film. Over the four decades of his acting career, Willis’ films have grossed over $5 billion worldwide. Nominated for five Golden Globes (one for “Moonlighting”) and three Emmys (one for “Moonlighting” and one for “Friends” as a guest role).

Read the Willis family’s full statement in the social media post below.