Hailey Joel Osment Shares Sweet Way Bruce Willis Kept In Touch Over The Years

Hailey Joel Osment was only ten years old when he earned an Oscar nomination for his performance in 1999’s The Sixth Sense. His performance made an impact on many people, including his co-star, Bruce Willis. He wasn’t even a teenager, but his acting abilities proved to be that of a veteran star. He and Bruce went their separate ways, but the adult actor continued to check in on the child star.

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Hailey Joel Osment is now 36 and reflecting on his friend, Bruce Willis, 69. He told People that in the years after they worked together on The Sixth Sense, Bruce checked in on him a lot.

“He would just call out of the blue … in the lead-up before travel. We went to Japan together twice … to open The Sixth Sense in different cities,” he added. “So [Bruce] would call ahead of that, and then sometimes I would just come home from school and the answering machine would be blinking and it’d be him going like, ‘Hey, Haley Joel. Just saying hi.'”

Hailey Joel recalled seeing many of Bruce’s films before they worked together, so getting to know him was a big deal.

“And that’s something that lasts your entire career, where you get to work with people who you’ve enjoyed watching in other things,” he told People. “It made a huge impression on me because that was the first gigantic celebrity that I’d worked with at an age where I was aware of his stardom.”

Bruce Willis has lost his ability to communicate due to complications from frontotemporal dementia. His family has been outspoken about his illness and their gratitude for all the love and support they’ve received.

Tallulah Willis shared an essay in Vogue that read in part,

“I have hopes for my father that I’m so reluctant to let go of. I’ve always recognized elements of his personality in me, and I just know that we’d be such good friends if only there were more time.”

This story’s featured image is by Getty Images / Handout.