28 May 2023 , 21:47
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Arnold Schwarzenegger has praised Bruce Willis amid his dementia diagnosis, ongoing battle and retirement from the film industry.
The Die Hard star's family announced Bruce's health battle last year, with a fresh update shared just two months ago - revealing a more specific diagnosis.
His family released a statement in March, when they spoke of how the 68 year old's condition - which was originally aphasia - had "progressed" and revealed that the diagnosis was frontotemporal dementia.
In recent weeks Bruce's wife gave an even fresher update, with Emma Hemming, 44, touching on how her husband's treatment options are remarkably "slim".
Fellow actor Arnold has now spoken out about Bruce, touching on his retirement and gushing over how brilliant he thinks he is.
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Arnold has gushed about how brilliant he thinks Bruce is (FilmMagic)
Bruce retired from acting after he was diagnosed with aphasia in 2022 (Getty Images)The actor, 75, gushed about Bruce in a recent interview with CinemaBlend and spoke of how he thinks he is "fantastic" and a "huge, huge star".
He also added: "I think that he will always be remembered as a great, great star, and a kind man."
Touching on Bruce's retirement after he stepped away from Hollywood - which followed his aphasia and then frontotemporal dementia diagnosis - Arnold said: "I understand that under his circumstances, health-wise, that he had to retire."
He then sweetly added: "In general, you know, we never really retire. Action heroes, they reload."
Bruce's condition 'progressed' earlier this year when his wife Emma provided fans with an update (AFP via Getty Images)Speaking in February about her husband's diagnosis, Bruce's wife Emma shared his frontotemporal dementia diagnosis and spoke of how his condition has progresses since the initial aphasia diagnosis in 2022.
Releasing a statement earlier this year she said: "Unfortunately, challenges with communication are just one symptom of the disease Bruce faces. While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis."
And earlier this month Emma spoke about options being slim in the world of dementia.
At the time she said: "When you live in the world of dementia you know that options are slim. But some won’t take that lying down which is how change is made, and I got to witness the beauty in that last night."
The health update came as she took social media to comment on the feature documentary film Little Empty Boxes, which follows Max Lugavere’s mum throughout her own dementia battle.
If you have questions about frontotemporal dementia, or any other form of dementia, you can contact the Dementia Research Infoline on 0300 111 5 111 between 9.00-5.00pm Monday to Friday or send an email to [email protected]
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