Bruce Willis is “stepping away” from acting due to health issues, his family said in a joint statement shared Wednesday.
The actor was recently diagnosed with aphasia, which is a disorder often caused by damage to a specific area of the brain. Due to this, Willis’ family said, he has decided to step away from his career.
“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,” the family said. “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.”
See the full statement, which was shared to daughter Rumer Willis’ Instagram and elsewhere on social media, below.
Willis—whose prolific career in film and television spans multiple decades—won an Emmy and a Golden Globe for his performance as detective David Addison on the ABC series Moonlighting. In the years since, the actor has become most often associated with blockbuster-sized action pieces, starting with the role of John McClane in the franchise-launching and imitations-spurring 1988 megahit Die Hard.
Die Hard sequels followed, as did starring roles in Armageddon and The Sixth Sense, among a stacked assortment of other hits. In 2000, he linked with Friends alum Matthew Perry for the comedy The Whole Nine Yards, which later received a sequel.
The actor’s IMDb page currently lists a number of projects as still being in various stages of production, including the upcoming thriller The Wrong Place from director Mike Burns. Last year, Willis starred in Randall Emmett’s directorial debut Midnight in the Switchgrass, which also featured Megan Fox and Machine Gun Kelly.
This month, Willis marked his 67th birthday. In a post commemorating her friend and ex-husband’s special day, Demi Moore said she was “thankful for our blended family.”
