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The first two episodes of Feud: Capote vs. The Swans came out on Wednesday, and I will be watching them this weekend. I think they’ll pair nicely as a double feature with RuPaul’s Drag Race. Demi Moore plays one of the title swans, Ann Woodward, and she’s been making the rounds promoting the series. While visiting GMA this week, Demi was asked how Bruce Willis is doing. It’s been one year since he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia, after a previous diagnosis of aphasia the year before. Without revealing too much, Demi said that Bruce was doing well all things considered. Then she shared the advice she’s given their daughters on how to relate to him throughout the stages of his illness:
Demi Moore has a touching message for those with loved ones battling neurodegenerative diseases.
While sharing an update on how ex-husband Bruce Willis is doing amid his journey with frontotemporal lobe dementia, the Ghost actress shared the advice she gave their daughters Rumer Willis, 35, Scout Willis, 32, and Tallulah Willis, 29, after his diagnosis last year.
“It’s important to just meet them where they’re at,” Demi said on Good Morning America Jan. 31. “And not hold onto what isn’t, but what is, because there’s great beauty and sweetness and loving and joy out of that.”
And the Indecent Proposal star expanded on her ex’s health, adding: “Given the givings, he’s doing very well.”
And since sharing Bruce’s diagnosis with frontotemporal lobe dementia (FTD) last February — he previously had been diagnosed with aphasia in 2022 — his family has been open about their struggles.
“I know I still have so much to learn about FTD, this community, and how research on the disease is evolving,” Bruce’s wife Emma Heming — with whom he shares daughters Mabel Willis, 11, and Evelyn Willis, 9 — wrote in a November 2023 article for Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper. “But I’m finding my footing. As much as I grieve this experience daily — as I know so many others do — I also know that it has made me stronger than I ever thought possible.”
As for why the Willis family has been so candid with his battle, his daughter Tallulah offered a simple explanation.
“It’s who we are as a family,” she told Drew Barrymore on her talk show in November. “If we can take something we’re struggling with as a family and individually to help other people — to turn it around — to make something beautiful about it — that’s really special for us.”
I think Demi’s suggestion — to meet a person where they’re at — is solid advice for interacting with people at any time. I find that when I’m frustrated with someone, if I take a step back I usually realize that I’m expecting a certain reaction or behavior from them that makes sense to me, but clearly isn’t obvious to them. Or I’m holding them to a previous version of themselves, when (hopefully) we’re all growing and evolving. Once I remove the expectation and instead listen to the person in that moment, then it’s a much more positive experience. Not that I succeed at this every time!
One thing Bruce is very lucky in is having a wonderful family of fierce women supporting him. They protect him, they love him, and though this time must be bittersweet, I’m sure they’re making memories with him, where he’s at now, that they will forever cherish. Yeesh, now that I’m feeling all the feels I’m gonna pivot to some campy Truman Capote and drag queens.
“I think, given the circumstances, he's doing very well. What I'll share is what I say to my children, which it's important to just meet them where they're at and not hold on to what isn't, but what is.” — @justdemi shares an update on Bruce Willis. pic.twitter.com/jXPQu7J3nW
— Good Morning America (@GMA) January 31, 2024
Photos credit: IMAGO/RW / Avalon, IMAGO/Faye Sadou / Avalon, Cover Images and via Instagram
