Rumer Willis is opening up about father Bruce Willis amid his ongoing dementia battle.
In an Instagram post on Monday, the actress, 35, said that she is “missing” her dad, 68, whose condition has continued to worsen after first being diagnosed with the disease last year.
In a photo of Bruce Willis holding Rumer Willis as a baby, she captioned the photo: “Really missing my papa today,” with an emoji smiling with a single tear.
“Hugs. It’s an odd kind of hard to miss someone who is still here. Dementia is a cruel beast,” one user wrote in the post’s comments.
In June, she shared a photo on Instagram for Father’s Day of the “ᴅɪᴇ Hard” star holding her daughter, Louetta Isley, born in April.
Rumer Willis recently shared a heartwarming photo on social media, capturing a poignant moment between her father, Bruce Willis, and her daughter. In the caption, Rumer expressed her gratitude for witnessing the pure and beautiful love her father showered upon her daughter, adding that she treasures the memory and considers herself fortunate to have such a loving and silly father. She also praised Bruce as the best “Girl Dad” in the game.
This post from Rumer comes shortly after Bruce’s wife, Emma Heming Willis, penned an emotional tribute to her husband. In a personal essay written for Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper, Emma opened up about the challenges they face as Bruce was diagnosed with aphasia in 2022, a condition that affects communication, particularly speech. The family announced in February that Bruce’s condition had progressed to frontotemporal dementia, a degenerative disease for which there is no known cure or treatment. The CEO of the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration, Susan Dickinson, explained that the condition can be genetically inherited in about 20-25% of cases but can also occur sporadically without a known cause.
These updates shed light on the Willis family’s journey as they navigate the impact of Bruce’s diagnosis. Rumer’s touching post and Emma’s heartfelt essay reflect the love and support surrounding Bruce during this challenging time.