Since Bruce Willis' dementia diagnosis, his wife, Emma Heming Willis, has been by his side. Now, she's telling the couple's story in the ABC special, Emma and Bruce: The Unexpected Journey, which airs on Aug. 26. In a preview, Emma told Diane Sawyer there are still "moments" when she sees her husband's personality shining through. "It's his laugh ... He has such a hearty laugh," she said. "Sometimes you'll see that twinkle in his eye, or that smirk. I just get transported." Bruce and Emma married in March 2009 and welcomed their first child, Mabel Ray Willis, in April 2012. Their second daughter, Evelyn Penn Willis, was born in May 2014. The actor also shares three daughters with his ex-wife Demi Moore, with whom he was married to until October 2000. Over a decade into their marriage, Emma revealed Bruce's aphasia diagnosis in 2022. Later that year, he was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a group of brain disorders that can lead to speech issues, loss of motor skills and personality changes. Since then, Emma has been a vocal advocate for FTD research to find a cure, raising awareness about FTD and other dementias and supporting those in caregiving roles. She also founded Make Time Wellness to promote brain health for women. So who is Bruce Willis’ wife? Here’s everything to know about Emma Heming Willis and her relationship with the actor. She was discovered during a TV model competition Emma was born in Malta, an island country south of Italy, which she once described as “small but beautiful” on her now-closed blog. After her parents divorced, she moved to London with her mother, where she launched her modeling career on the show The British Elle Supermodel in the ‘90s. Emma won the competition show and started walking the runway for major fashion houses like Chanel, Karl Lagerfeld, Valentino and Giorgio Armani. She also had a few acting roles in movies like Perfect Stranger and The Comebacks, as well as on the TV series Entourage. She's appeared on magazine covers and walked the runway During her decades-long modeling career, Emma has been featured in magazines like Vogue, Marie Claire and Elle — and on at least one cover with her husband, Bruce. The couple were famously photographed for W Magazine's July 2009 issue in a risqué photo shoot to which Emma later paid tribute. “Happy 50th anniversary @wmag,” the former model captioned the series of images in a September 2022 Instagram post. “Usually we are a pretty wholesome couple till we aren’t 😉.” Emma has also been the face of Dior cosmetics campaigns and has modeled in commercials for brands like Redken, per her literary bio. She and Bruce met in 2007 Emma wrote on her now-defunct website that she and her future husband met at their mutual trainer’s gym in 2007. In a joint interview with Bruce in 2016, the mom of two told PEOPLE that she was surprised at “how charming and how funny” the actor was. His response? “I was already in love with her." They married in 2009 Bruce and Emma wed on March 21, 2009, at their home in Turks and Caicos. The following week, they made their marriage official in a private ceremony at a friend’s Beverly Hills home. “Today marks our 15th wedding anniversary!” Emma captioned a touching Instagram post in March 2024. “Our union and connection is probably stronger than ever. We have two bright, fun and healthy daughters. We have a family unit that is built on mutual respect and admiration. And simply, I just love and adore the man I married." She and Bruce share two daughters In addition to the three children he has with Moore, Bruce has two with Emma. Mabel was born on April 1, 2012, and Evelyn arrived a few years later on May 5, 2014. Both of their daughters have made appearances on Emma's Instagram, including videos of them exploring Paris and being silly at home with their dad. “Father’s Day is a time I get to reflect on my deep appreciation and respect I have for Bruce as I watch him father our little ones,” Emma captioned a sweet photo of the Pulp Fiction actor kissing Mabel on the forehead in June 2023. “Where it might not be 'conventional,' what he’s teaching them will span generations. Unconditional love, kindness, strength, compassion, patience, generosity, resilience.” Emma told Town & Country in October 2024 that she’s “never tried to sugarcoat anything” about Bruce's condition to Mabel and Evelyn. “What I learned from our therapist was that if children ask questions, they're ready to know the answer,” she said. “If we could see that Bruce was struggling, I would address it with the kids so they could understand, but this disease is chronic, progressive and terminal." She supported him after his aphasia and dementia diagnoses On March 30, 2022, the family announced on Instagram that Bruce was retiring from his decades-long acting career after he was diagnosed with aphasia. He was later diagnosed more specifically with FTD — an update Emma described as “devastating” but also helpful in figuring out how to support her husband best. "After our family shared the news, I felt like I could breathe,” she wrote in a November 2023 op-ed for Maria Shriver’s Sunday Paper. “Suddenly, I wasn’t alone anymore and I could seek the support Bruce, myself, and our family so desperately needed.” Emma revealed that being able to put Bruce’s condition into a medical context not only gave her clarity but also community. She wrote, “I wouldn’t wish an FTD diagnosis on anyone, but our journey has changed how I perceive the world ... There is power in becoming an advocate for this community. It’s something that I want our kids to see me face out loud, working with others, fighting through the stigma and isolation that a disease like this can bring.” She's become an advocate for people with FTD and their caretakers Since Bruce’s FTD diagnosis, Emma has become an advocate for families living with the disease. She launched the supplements company Make Time Wellness in 2023 to advocate for brain health and she is now the business' chief impact officer. The following year, Emma and her co-founder, Helen Christoni, launched the Make Time Podcast to share advice and tips on women's health. Emma has also partnered with The Association for Frontotemporal Dementia (AFTD) to bring awareness to FTD and find a cure. In February 2024, Emma announced that she was writing a book about her caregiving journey. The book, titled The Unexpected Journey, will be released on Sept. 9, 2025. “Identifying the right resources to educate and enlighten myself has been powerful and has allowed me the space to continue to move forward in the most positive way so that I can be the best mother, wife, daughter, friend and care partner," she said in a statement. "I want to be able to share that with the next person who finds themselves here.”