Holidays with Bruce Willis are “fun” and “different” (Exclusive)

Emma Heming Willis is looking forward to spending the holidays with her husband Bruce Willis and his family.

The model, actress and author, 47, speaks exclusively to PEOPLE on Thursday, Nov. 20, at the End Well 2025 conference in Los Angeles. “Bruce loves Christmas and we love celebrating Christmas with him. It’s just a different look, so we kind of adapted to it.”

Bruce, 70, was diagnosed with aphasia and then frontotemporal dementia (FTD) in 2022. His family announced at the time that he was stepping away from acting. Emma has raised awareness about FTD through interviews, social media, and her book, An Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope, and Yourself in Caregiving. At the End Well 2025 conference, I spoke on stage with Yvette Nicole Brown about dementia care.

In an interview with PEOPLE, Emma admitted that holidays can be “very difficult” for families of people with dementia. But, she jokes, “I think it’s important to play ‘Die Hard’ because it’s a Christmas movie.”

Never miss a news. Sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up to date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to human interest stories.

“We have to learn and adapt, make new memories and bring in the same traditions we had before,” she added. “Life goes on. It just goes on. Dementia is hard, but there’s also joy in it. I think it’s important not to paint such a negative picture of dementia. We’re still laughing. There’s still joy. It just looks different.”

Emma and Bruce, who married in 2009, have daughters Mabel Ray Willis, 13, and Evelyn Penn Willis, 11. The Sixth Sense star is also the father of three grown daughters: Rumer Glenn Willis, 37, Scout LaRue Willis, 34, and Talulah Belle Willis, 31, whom he has with ex-wife Demi Moore, 63.

Emma says: “Family life is very simple, in fact it always has been. I think it’s a joy just to be with him. I get to be with him and be his wife. That’s the moment.”

The Unexpected Journey: Finding Strength, Hope, and Yourself on the Caregiving Path is available now at bookstores everywhere.