Cedar bush drastically pruned by husband:(

Help! My husband just pruned a shrub that had grown too tall and was blocking the view of the pond - I think it is a variety of cedar. Now there is a big hole and the brown (?dead) branches inside are all exposed. He insists that the plant will sprout new green foliage to fill in the space now that the inside is exposed to the sunlight, however I have my doubts...any advice?
Thanks!

 

A semi-dwarf cultivar of Sawara Cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera; not a cedar [Cedrus] at all). No, it won't fill in that hole.