Following in the footsteps of Phathom Pharmaceuticals' and Allergan Aesthetics’ own partnerships with “Saturday Night Live” stars, Teva Pharmaceuticals is turning to a famous funnyman to tackle a not-so-funny topic.
The drugmaker has recruited Will Forte, who appeared on “SNL” for nearly a decade in the aughts, perhaps most memorably as MacGyver parody character MacGruber, to join an ongoing Huntington’s disease awareness campaign.
“Honestly HD” launched in 2022 with the aim of educating people diagnosed with Huntington’s about what to expect from the disease, while also offering support resources and testimonials from others in the Huntington’s disease community.
Though unbranded, the campaign site does include an external link on one page to learn more about Teva’s Austedo as a treatment for chorea, the uncontrollable movements that typically occur with Huntington’s.
With the new partnership, the “Honestly HD” site now features images and a video of Forte with his brother-in-law, Doug Modling, discussing their family’s experiences with Huntington’s. Modling, whose sister is married to Forte, was diagnosed with the neurological disorder in 2022, following his late father’s own diagnosis.
Their story “captures the perseverance of so many families impacted by this disease” and offers “inspiration, hope and the importance of community,” Heather DeMyers, VP of U.S. innovative medicines marketing at Teva, said in a company announcement.
“Seeing firsthand the challenges my brother-in-law faces, and his enduring hope despite it all, I’m incredibly inspired by the resilience of everyone I’ve met from the HD community. That’s why I’m sharing our story—to help raise awareness of this disease and let people know they are not alone, and that there are resources available to support them,” Forte said in a statement.
In the video, Forte and Modling describe Huntington’s and chorea—with the actor recalling how HD was explained to him as akin to a combination of ALS, Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease—and discuss the difficulty of watching Modling’s father die from a disease he’d inherited as well. Modling also shares how various routines, hobbies and support from Forte and other family members have helped him manage the physical and emotional effects of Huntington’s, and how that support has inspired him to become an advocate for the community himself.
“The only way that you can get through this is by living in the present, so we try to make the present as fun and adventurous as we can,” Forte concludes in the video, accompanied by some perfectly timed beatboxing from Modling.