Introduction

On March 30, legendary actor Bruce Willis announced his retirement from acting at the age of 67. This marks the end of a great acting career, that includes roles in such films as John McClane in Diehard, Dr. Malcolm Crowe in The Sixth Sense, and Butch Coolidge in Pulp Fiction. His retirement ends under rather unfortunate circumstances, which opens up a lot of what Bruce was suffering at the end of his career.

The Controversy

Bruce’s family announced Bruce Willis’s retirement was due to an aphasia diagnosis. Aphasia is a neurogenic language disorder caused by damage in a specific brain area, that controls language expression and comprehension. Aphasia leaves a person unable to communicate effectively with others. After a recent report by production crew members, it has been reported that Bruce’s aphasia has been known since 2017 when he was playing David Dunn in Glass. Reports indicated that Bruce Willis needed to resort to using an earpiece during production so staff could read him lines. His co-producer Stephen J. Eads paid $200,000 per project to guide Willis around on set. The Times reported this but downplayed any concerns about the actor’s health. 

The production crew members have reported that Bruce was appearing “slightly off,” and according to two production sources:

“Bruce seemed a little confused at times and needed a little more help with his lines. This was the first time that I had heard anything about his health.”

They further stated:

“At that point, it seemed that he was a little off. We thought it could be anything from aging to maybe even being a little drunk — common mistakes that people make when seeing the first signs of anything like dementia — to just not wanting to be there. In reflection, Bruce may have been struggling with all of this back then.”

(Bruce Willis in his iconic role as John McClane in Diehard)

The Reason

Bruce acted with aphasia for about 5 years. The reason he was doing this is still unclear. But many say that it was because of his sheer love of working as an actor and that was why he did not retire sooner. Others say it was because he has wanted to get out with as much money as possible before his health made it very hard for him to act. The reason many say this is the number of movies he was acting in his last four years. According to reports by the LA Times, Bruce had been acting in 21 different films in a 4- year span, and in the last two years, Willis starred in 15 films. The majority were low-budget efforts, often $10 million or less.

Family

His family would come out with a statement about Bruce’s conditions, saying:

“Everyone wanted Bruce to feel comfortable. He does struggle with his short-term memory and he has a calmer, easier comfort level with people he’s had in his life a long time. He’s been in a state of cognitive decline for a while now, and it’s finally progressed to the stage where it’s clear he’s not going to be able to speak or comprehend much going forward.”

His Property

Over the years as Bruce’s health declined, he has sold over $65 million dollars worth of his property. Since 2018 he has sold much of his property, stating that he has no use for it. This includes a 13,500-square-foot beachfront property priced at $33 million and a 6,000-square-foot Central Park West duplex for $17.75 million.

(Bruce Willis Turks and Caicos mansion priced at $33 million)

Closing

With his legendary acting, Bruce Willis is a one-of-a-kind actor, who helps cultivate an entire generation of moviegoers. It is sad to see this legend retire from the acting world on such sad terms.