Bruce Willis ' daughter Tallulah Willis has opened up about her "grief" caused by the Hollywood star's battle with aphasia.
The 29-year-old, who Bruce shares with ex-wife Demi Moore, spoke candidly about her dad's diagnosis of the degenerative brain condition and that she knew "something was wrong for a long time".
Tallulah's deeply personal essay was penned on Vogue, which delved into an array of issues including growing up in the spotlight of two stars, her therapy, being diagnosed with anorexia and ADHD herself before moving onto Bruce's battle.
She said that the family put Bruce's "vague unresponsiveness" down to "Hollywood hearing loss" before Tallulah discussed her feelings as a teenager.
Tallulah wrote: "Later that unresponsiveness broadened, and I sometimes took it personally.
"He had had two babies with my stepmother, Emma Heming Willis, and I thought he’d lost interest in me. Though this couldn’t have been further from the truth, my adolescent brain tortured itself with some faulty math: I’m not beautiful enough for my mother, I’m not interesting enough for my father.
"I admit that I have met Bruce’s decline in recent years with a share of avoidance and denial that I’m not proud of. The truth is that I was too sick myself to handle it.
"For the last four years, I have suffered from anorexia nervosa, which I’ve been reluctant to talk about because, after getting sober at age 20, restricting food has felt like the last vice that I got to hold on to."
She went on to give more scope to her father's diagnosis, admitting that he was "quietly struggling" while she battled with illness at the same time.
Tallulah added: "While I was wrapped up in my body dysmorphia, flaunting it on Instagram, my dad was quietly struggling. All kinds of cognitive testing was being conducted, but we didn’t have an acronym yet.
"I remember a moment when it hit me painfully: I was at a wedding in the summer of 2021 on Martha’s Vineyard, and the bride’s father made a moving speech. Suddenly I realized that I would never get that moment, my dad speaking about me in adulthood at my wedding.
"It was devastating. I left the dinner table, stepped outside, and wept in the bushes."
Despite his mental issues, Tallulah added that the dementia has "thankfully not affected his mobility" and Bruce always knows who she is.
She concluded: "He may always know who I am, give or take the occasional bad day.
"I know that trials are looming, that this is the beginning of grief.
"It feels like a unique and special time in my family, and I’m just so glad to be here for it."
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