Rumer Willis reveals the bittersweet reason why she is ‘so grateful’ amid dad Bruce’s dementia battle

Bruce Willis may be suffering from rapidly progressing frontotemporal dementia (FTD), but that hasn’t stopped him from bonding with his three-year-old granddaughter, Louetta.

The Die Hard star’s eldest daughter, Rumer Willis, shared on The Inside Edit podcast that despite Bruce’s debilitating FTD symptoms, including declining language and communication skills, she was glad for any time that Louetta could spend with him.

“I love getting to go over and see him. I’m so grateful that I have a child that got to meet him because I don’t know if my sisters will have that,” she said. Bruce shares his daughters Rumer, Scout and Tallulah with his ex-wife, Demi Moore, and daughters Mabel and Evelyn with his second wife, Emma Heming. 

Rumer added that the blended family had “rallied together” in the wake of the star’s 2023 diagnosis. “We don’t do it perfectly, but we’re always striving to continue to create connection and find ways to be with each other and support each other through something that is kind of unprecedented,” she said. 

Louetta has brought light to the family amid Bruce’s illness, and is particularly close with her grandfather, as Rumer previously told People. “Even with my dad, given the challenges that he’s dealing with, whenever we go over there to visit, his face just lights up, and he gets so excited and is so sweet with her,” she explained. 

“My family is so incredible with her. I feel so lucky, and she’s so lucky. I mean, they are obsessed with her.” Demi is also popular with the little one and often lets her break the rules while Rumer is away. 

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“My mom, she’s Yaya to Lou. She’s the one who brought in the contraband of Moana and Disney because I was like, ‘We don’t watch TV in this house. We don’t ever. Not until she’s five.’ And then I went over, and Moana was on. I was like, ‘Come on!'” she laughed.  

See more of Rumer and Louetta below…

“But they love each other. I mean, you should see her face light up when they’re on FaceTime when we’re away. She just gets so excited, and it’s sweet, and my mom is so incredible with babies. She always has been, and so it’s such a delight to see them together. They’re so silly and wonderful.”

Rumer welcomed Louetta in 2023 with her ex-partner, Derek Richard Thomas, whom she split from just over a year after their daughter was born. 

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“Your wedding was a huge reckoning moment for me,” the 37-year-old told The Inside Edit host Maeve Reilly. “I heard your vows, and I just realized that the situation I was in was never going to look like that, no matter how much effort I put in.”

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“And I was just watching you guys – just weeping, holding my child, and I just thought, you know what? I need to have more value for myself,” she continued. 

“I need to go and like, leave, no matter how scared I am and find something that looks like this, because I want that.” Rumer added that while the breakup with Derek was “brutal”, she was feeling “back in her power” and ready to date again.