Emma Heming Willis, the wife of actor Bruce Willis, has pleaded to paparazzi to stop yelling at her husband in public.
The ailing actor’s wife released an emotional plea on Instagram, calling for greater education about dementia, an affliction Willis is currently living with.
“If you are someone who is looking after someone with dementia, you know how difficult and stressful it can be to get someone out into the world and to navigate them safely, even just to get a cup of coffee,” she said in a video clip.
“It’s clear that there’s still a lot of education that needs to be put out. So this one is going out to the photographers and video people that are trying to get those exclusives of my husband out and about. Just keep your space.”
Emma referenced a recent incident where photographers attempted to get Willis’ attention by yelling at him during a rare public appearance in Santa Monica, California.
“I know this is your job, but maybe just keep your space. Please don’t be yelling at my husband, asking how he’s doing, whatever,” Emma said.
“The woo-hooing and the yippee-ki-yay’s — just don’t do it. Give him the space. Allow for our family or whoever’s with him that day to be able to get him from Point A to Point B safely. That’s my PSA.”
The plea came after Willis’ family announced that his speaking disorder, aphasia, had progressed into frontotemporal dementia, a condition that currently has no cure.
“While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis,” Emma, along with Bruce’s ex-wife Demi Moore and five daughters, said in a statement on the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration website.
“FTD is a cruel disease that many of us have never heard of and can strike anyone. For people under 60, FTD is the most common form of dementia, and because getting the diagnosis can take years, FTD is likely much more prevalent than we know.”
FTD patients suffer personality changes, speech difficulties and motor impairment.
In March 2022, Willis’ family first announced that the actor is retiring due to aphasia, a condition that can affect speech, the ability to write, or comprehend written and verbal language.
The couple tied the knot in 2009 and have two children, Mabel, 10 and Evelyn, 8.
The Die Hard star also has three daughters with Moore, Rumer, 34, Scout, 31 and Tallulah, 29.