Sylvester Stallone and Bruce Willis used to be attached at the hip, but the “Tulsa King” actor said he hadn’t spoken to his “Expendables” co-star much since Willis’ aphasia diagnosis.
“Bruce is going through some really, really difficult times,” Stallone said in an interview with the Hollywood Reporter published Monday. “So he’s been sort of incommunicado.”
The “Rocky” actor added that not speaking to Willis “????s me” and “it’s so sad.”
Stallone’s comments come months after Willis’ daughter, Rumer Willis, announced in March that the “??? Hard” actor was diagnosed with the cognitive disorder and would step away from his acting career.
Bruce Willis halts acting career after diagnosis with cognitive ??s?????
According to the National Aphasia Association, aphasia is an acquired communication disorder that impairs the ability to process language but does not affect intelligence.
When news of Willis’ aphasia diagnosis broke, Stallone showed support on his Instagram page, posting pictures of their friendship over the years.
“We go back a long way, praying for the best for you and your wonderful family,” Stallone captioned his March post.
Concerns about Bruce Willis’ declining cognitive state swirled around in recent years
Not long after the s??????? announcement, The Times reported that Willis had exhibited signs of decline in recent years. Filmmakers who worked with him said he had difficulty remembering his lines and could not perform action scenes.
“After the first day of working with Bruce, I could see it firsthand, and I realized that there was a bigger issue at stake here and why I had been asked to shorten his lines,” said “Out of ?????” director Mike Burns.
In Bruce Willis’ ‘impromptu’ harmonica session, there’s nothing sad about the blues
The condition might have halted Willis’ career, but the actor is still expressing his talent in other ways.
In August, Willis’ wife, Emma Heming Willis, shared a video of the actor playing the blues on his harmonica with musician Derek Richard Thomas.
“Their talent is speaking for itself,” Heming Willis captioned her Instagram post.
Jennifer Flavin files for divorce from Sylvester Stallone after 25 years of marriage
Elsewhere in his Hollywood Reporter interview, Stallone spoke about his feud with “Rocky” producer Irwin Winkler and his marriage to Jennifer Flavin. In August, Flavin filed for divorce, but the two have since reconciled.
“Hopefully, you’re involved with people who understand the foibles of life, the fragility of it, and how rare a real good relationship is,” Stallone told THR. “Sometimes I put the work ahead of [my family], and that is a tragic mistake that won’t happen again.”
