Ill health ends stellar career - 6th April 2022

Hollywood star Bruce Willis has retired from acting. This announcement came in an Instagram post which explained he's developed aphasia. It explained that the illness was "impacting his cognitive abilities".

Aphasia's a condition which impacts language skills. It affects both spoken communication and the person's reading and writing. Although head injuries and strokes are the usual cause, aphasia does sometimes appear over time.

Aged 67, Willis rose to fame in the 1980s. However, it was as action hero John McClane in the Die Hard movies that he became a major star. These performances helped secure the films billions of dollars in box office income and left Willis in great demand.

The Instagram announcement was signed by his wife, Emma Heming Willis, former wife Demi Moore, and Willis's five children. They said, "We are moving through this as a strong family unit and wanted to bring his fans in because we know how much he means to you".

When he was asked about retirement in 2010, Willis saw it as something in the far off distance.

Bruce Willis: "I don't think about it very much. I don't, it seldom crosses my mind to think about retiring. And I'm sure at some point, I'll either be retired by my own choice or not by my choice. I still like working and I still like doing what I do and I like the, the process of making films."

However, the choice about retirement was finally not his own.