Movies Arnold Schwarzenegger says Bruce Willis will be remembered as 'a great, great star' "But in general, you know, we never really retire. Action heroes, they reload." By Clark Collis Clark Collis Senior Writer EW's editorial guidelines Published on May 29, 2023 01:09PM EDT Arnold Schwarzenegger has called his action movie peer Bruce Willis "a huge, huge star" and "a kind man." "I think that he's fantastic," Schwarzenegger said in an interview with CinemaBlend. "He was, always for years and years, is a huge, huge star. And I think that he will always be remembered as a great, great star. And a kind man. I understand that under his circumstances, health-wise, that he had to retire. But in general, you know, we never really retire. Action heroes, they reload." Arnold Schwarzenegger and Bruce Willis. Tommaso Boddi/Getty; Jim Spellman/WireImage Last year, Willis' daughter Rumer announced via Instagram that her father had been diagnosed with aphasia, which affects language abilities, and was "stepping away" from his career. "We wanted to share that our beloved Bruce has been experiencing some health issues and has recently been diagnosed with aphasia, which is impacting his cognitive abilities," she wrote. "As a result of this and with much consideration Bruce is stepping away from the career that has meant so much to him." Schwarzenegger has long been an admirer of Willis. In the new book The Last Action Heroes: The Triumphs, Flops, and Feuds of Hollywood's Kings of Carnage, author Nick de Semlyen recounts how the Austrian actor "guffawed through a screening of the movie at Fox, not least at the moment when McClane exclaims, 'They have missiles, automatic weapons, and enough plastic explosives to orbit Arnold Schwarzenegger!'" Want more movie news? Sign up for Entertainment Weekly's free newsletter to get the latest trailers, celebrity interviews, film reviews, and more. Related content: Find out why Arnold Schwarzenegger 'guffawed' through Die Hard in this Last Action Heroes book excerpt Is Die Hard a Christmas movie? The ultimate EW investigation Celebrate Bruce Willis' career with these 5 classic film performances Vendetta director says it's 'a special honor' to make one of Bruce Willis' final films