LOS ANGELES — Bruce Willis, the star of the Die Hard franchise and dozens of other action movies, will retire from acting after being diagnosed with aphasia, a disease that has hampered his “cognitive abilities,” his family said on Wednesday.

Willis, 67, rose to fame in the 1980s comedy-drama TV series Moonlighting, and has appeared in about 100 films across his four-decade career, garnering acclaim for his roles in Pulp Fiction and The Sixth Sense, and winning a Golden Globe Award and two Emmys.

But Willis is perhaps best known for playing the tough-as-nails New York cop who pursued bad guys in the five Die Hard movies, released from 1988 to 2013.

“This is a really challenging time for our family and we are so appreciative of your continued love, compassion and support,” his family said in a statement.

Mr. Willis and actress Demi Moore were one of Hollywood’s most high-profile celebrity couples in the 1990s until their divorce in 2000, but they remained close after the break-up. He is currently married to model and actress Emma Heming and is father to a total of five children with both women.

“We are moving through this as a strong family unit, and wanted to bring his fans in because we know how much he means to you, as you do to him,” said the statement, which was signed by the actor’s family and shared on Instagram by Demi Moore and their daughter Rumer.

Aphasia is a disorder most commonly caused by a stroke that can also stem from head trauma or, in rare cases, from neurological disease, said Brenda Rapp, a professor of cognitive science at Johns Hopkins University. Symptoms vary widely and can affect speech, comprehension and reading ability, Ms. Rapp said in a telephone interview. In some instances, aphasia can be treated with speech therapy.

Mr. Willis had been especially active in recent years. He appeared in eight movies released in 2021 alone, none of which were critically acclaimed.

The satirical Razzie film awards gave Willis his own special category this year, nominating him eight times for “Worst Performance by Bruce Willis in a 2021 Movie.” The one called Cosmic Sin was awarded the Razzie on Saturday.

Larry Gordon, producer of the first Die Hard movie and its 1990 sequel, said he was saddened by the news of Mr. Willis’ condition, telling the Hollywood Reporter that the actor was “the consummate pro and a gutsy guy.”

“Grace and guts! Love to you all!,” actor Jamie Lee Curtis wrote on Demi Moore’s Instagram account beneath a picture of Willis and the family statement.

On social media, his fans shared their feelings of sadness and shock after news of his diagnosis broke, and many of them paid tribute to Willis.

“His work has meant more to me than I could ever put into words,” wrote a fan with the Twitter handle Cody Leach. “If this is in fact the end of your acting career, all I can say is thank you.”

Over the course of his career, the Hollywood veteran has appeared in films grossing more than $2.5 billion, according to online database IMDB. In 2006, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, a Los Angeles landmark honoring legends of film, television and music.

Born on a US military base in Germany in 1955, Willis was raised in New Jersey. After moving to New York to pursue an acting career, he appeared in off-Broadway productions and landed a few minor roles before getting his big break playing the wise-cracking private detective David Addison in Moonlighting. —  Reuters

LOS ANGELES — Will Smith refused a request to leave the Oscars ceremony after he slapped presenter Chris Rock, Hollywood’s film academy said on Wednesday as it started a process that could lead to the best actor winner’s expulsion from the group.

During the live telecast, Mr. Smith strode up to the stage after Mr. Rock made a joke about the appearance of Mr. Smith’s wife, then smacked the comedian’s face. The actor returned to his seat and twice yelled an obscenity at Mr. Rock.

Less than an hour later, Mr. Smith accepted the best actor trophy, prompting questions about why he had not been escorted out.

“Things unfolded in a way we could not have anticipated,” said the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which hands out the Oscars, in a statement.

“While we would like to clarify that Mr. Smith was asked to leave the ceremony and refused, we also recognize we could have handled the situation differently.”

The academy said it started a process that could lead to discipline against Mr. Smith for violations of its standards of conduct, “including inappropriate physical contact, abusive or threatening behavior, and compromising the integrity of the Academy.”

Suspension, expulsion or other sanctions may be approved at its next board meeting on April 18.

Mr. Smith apologized to Rock, the academy, and viewers in a statement on Monday, saying he was “out of line” and “reacted emotionally.”

Rock had referred to the 1997 film G.I. Jane in which actress Demi Moore shaved her head. It was unclear whether Rock was aware that Ms. Pinkett-Smith has a condition that causes hair loss.

At a stand-up show in Boston on Wednesday evening, Mr. Rock made his first public comments about the matter, saying he was still “processing” what happened and would talk about it later.

“It’ll be serious. It’ll be funny, but right now I’m going to tell some jokes,” he told a sold-out crowd.

Under the academy’s rules, Smith has the chance to provide a written response before the group takes action. Smith’s representatives did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

The academy in its statement apologized to Mr. Rock and thanked him for “resilience in that moment.”

After the incident, the comedian quickly regained his composure and announced the winner of best documentary, Questlove’s Summer of Soul.

Oscars co-hosts Amy Schumer and Wanda Sykes said they were sickened by the turn of events at the film industry’s highest honors.

“Still triggered and traumatized,” Ms. Schumer said in a post on Instagram on Wednesday. “I love my friend @chrisrock and believe he handled it like a pro. Stayed up there and gave an Oscar to his friend @questlove and the whole thing was so disturbing.”

“So much pain in @willsmith anyway I’m still in shock and stunned and sad,” she added. “Waiting for this sickening feeling to go away from what we all witnessed.”

Ms. Sykes also said the incident was “sickening” and that she felt physically ill at the time. “I’m still a little traumatized,” she said in clips released on Wednesday from an interview on the Ellen DeGeneres talk show.

Ms. Sykes said she felt Mr. Smith should have been removed from the event and not permitted to accept his award for playing the father of tennis stars Venus and Serena Williams in King Richard.

“For them to let him stay in that room and enjoy the rest of the show and accept his award, I was like how gross is this? This is just the wrong message,” she said.

The clash with Mr. Rock overshadowed the night’s awards, in which the heartwarming movie CODA won best picture. Ms. Schumer and Ms. Sykes co-hosted the ceremony with Regina Hall. — Reuters