Bill Murray appeared with his “The Friend” co-star Naomi Watts on a recent episode of “Watch What Happens Live” and told host Andy Cohen about his fond memories of Bruce Willis, with whom he became close to on the set of Wes Anderson’s “Moonrise Kingdom.” The actors’ paths crossed decades before when Murray was an “SNL” cast member in the late 1970s and Willis was an aspiring actor working as a page at NBC.
“‘Moonrise Kingdom’ was a really beautiful, lovely film. I got work with and have a wonderful time with Bruce Willis,” Murray said. “He just had a birthday. Bruce Willis is a good guy. He is a good fucking guy. He was a good friend.”
“He was also a page at NBC when I was on ‘Saturday Night Live,’” Murray continued. “His job was to come and refill, and this sounds insane, but his job was to come and go to the dressing rooms and refill the M&Ms and pretzels and snacks in the actors’ dressing rooms. I remember when I met him after he was already a successful guy he said to me, ‘You and Gilda were nice to me.’ I always thought I am good with this guy.”
Murray and Willis would finally act together in “Moonrise Kingdom,” Wes Anderson’s 2012 coming-of-age dramedy about two misfit teens who defy their parents and run away together on a coastal New England island. The film was a box office hit with $68 million worldwide and earned an Oscar nomination for best original screenplay.
Willis retired from acting in 2022 after being diagnosed with aphasia. The disorder is caused by brain damage and affects a person’s ability to communicate. Willis’ family announced a year later that his condition had progressed into frontotemporal dementia. The family noted at the time: “While this is painful, it is a relief to finally have a clear diagnosis.”