Last year, Bruce Willis retired from acting due to difficulties with aphasia, and was later diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia. But the star leaves behind an incredible legacy as one of Hollywood’s most iconic action stars.
Now, one fellow star is sharing some heartwarming words about Willis’ retirement, praising him as an all-time great action legend.
Bruce Willis appeared in many classic films over his career, including Pulp Fiction and The Sixth Sense, but he’ll always be best known for playing John McClane in the action classic Die Hard and its many sequels.
Die Hard is regarded as one of the best action films of all time (and, depending on who you ask, one of the best Christmas movies). Along with other action hits like Armageddon, Sin City and Red, Willis was a true action movie icon.
One of the few action heroes who can call him a peer is the legendary Arnold Schwarzenegger — and when the Terminator star was recently asked about Willis’ retirement from acting, Arnie shared some heartwarming words about Willis’ legacy.
“I think that he’s fantastic. He was, always for years and years, is a huge, huge star. And I think that he will always be remembered as a great, great star,” Schwarzenegger told CinemaBlend, also calling him a “kind man.”
“I understand that under his circumstances, health-wise, that he had to retire. But in general, you know, we never really retire. Action heroes, they reload.”
Willis’ retirement marked the end for one of Hollywood’s last true action megastars. Last year, Sylvester Stallone called himself and Schwarzenegger “the last two tyrannosaurus,” forming a friendship over their unique status as action vets.
In the same interview, Stallone also shared his condolences for Willis: “Bruce is going through some really, really difficult times… That kills me. It’s so sad,” he told the Hollywood Reporter.
Stallone, Schwarzenegger and Willis all appeared together in the film The Expendables. Going back further, they were the three original celebrity investors in the Planet Hollywood restaurant chain.
Schwarzenegger is right: even though it’s sad that Bruce Willis will never act again, he’ll always be remembered as one of Hollywood’s great action heroes.
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