Popular actor Bruce Willis had been diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) last month. The retired actor stepped out in Santa Monica on Thursday. FTD symptoms often arise in younger patients between the ages of 40 and 65, according to the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.
During the filming sessions in which the actor was present, people present could already sense that something was not right. He had difficulty in holding conversations, coupled with not being able to connect words correctly. Recently, Willis’ wife says it is “hard to know” if the award-winning actor is aware of the frontotemporal dementia he was diagnosed with earlier this year.
Bruce Willis, a well-known actor in Hollywood, is recognized for his exceptional talent, which has contributed to his success. Throughout his illustrious career, he has portrayed stoic and gritty characters, adding life to action-packed thrillers. However, rumors have circulated about his behavior on film sets, which has been occasionally contradictory to his on-screen persona.
This was revealed when screenwriters–Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen collaborated on The Fifth Element, which starred Willis as Korben Dallas. Later, Besson and Kamen reconnected to launch the Transporter franchise, which gave rise to Jason Statham, the action movie star.
According to Kamen, working with Willis in The Fifth Element proved to be a challenge. That’s why he and Besson decided to cast Dwayne Johnson’s Fast X co-star in the Transporter franchise.
Jason Statham got his big break before The Transporter in Guy Ritchie’s Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch. At that time, a supporting part in the science fiction film Ghosts of Mars by John Carpenter represented his only significant foray into Hollywood. The actor evolved into an action star in 2002 with the release of The Transporter, written by Luc Besson and Robert Mark Kamen.
As aforementioned, Besson and Kamen previously collaborated with Bruce Willis in the 1997 English-language French sci-fi action film The Fifth Element.
In an interview with Uproxx, Kamen discussed working in The Fifth Element with the seasoned actor:
“He was very difficult, and Luc [Besson] worked around it. But Luc wasn’t used to it. After he did that, he came to me and said, ‘We have to create our own movie stars.’ And that’s what we did with The Transporter. We created Jason.”
Moreover, Besson and Willis also agreed upon an intriguing compromise while filming The Fifth Element.
