Most people think of Parkinson’s disease (PD) as a physical disorder. But ~50% of people with Parkinson’s may develop hallucinations and/or delusions over the course of their disease, which they don’t realize are related to the disease. Consequently, up to 90% don’t raise it with their physicians.
That was the case for Ryan Reynolds (world-renowned actor/entrepreneur and Parkinson’s disease advocate) whose father lived with Parkinson’s and dealt with both motor and non-motor disease-related symptoms until his death, as Ryan’s mother Tammy navigated his fragile and confused mental state. Ryan has been a long-time vocal advocate within the Parkinson’s community and a longstanding board member of the Michael J. Fox Foundation.
Ryan had never partnered with a pharmaceutical company. But when Acadia Pharmaceuticals, which developed and commercialized a treatment for PD-related hallucinations and delusions approached him to meet and exceed our objective to raise awareness of these symptoms, he agreed. His motivation: to help raise awareness among caregivers, patients and their care providers about a common, yet unrecognized aspect of Parkinson’s disease.
Ryan and Tammy had a highly personal, emotional and authentic story to tell that resonated with the target – caregivers often in their 30s and 40s when a parent is afflicted by the disease – and motivated them to act.
Research from Acadia Pharmaceuticals reveals that Parkinson’s-related hallucinations and delusions are under-recognized and under-treated. These non-motor symptoms can be more distressing than motor-related ones, yet many patients and caregivers fail to connect them to Parkinson’s disease (PD) or mention them to healthcare providers (HCPs) due to stigma and fears of institutionalization. When these symptoms are finally addressed, adult children often express regret, saying, "If I only knew then what I know now."
Through a talent search by the Amy Doner Group and extensive research, Ryan Reynolds emerged as the ideal advocate for the Acadia’s "More to Parkinson’s" campaign. His personal experience—caring for his father with PD—mirrored what many adult children face when their parents experience Parkinson’s-related hallucinations and delusions. With approximately one million Americans living with PD, often diagnosed when their children are in their 30s and 40s, Reynolds' story offered a culturally relevant and relatable narrative. By capitalizing on Reynolds’ public prominence, the campaign aimed to raise awareness about these overlooked symptoms and empower caregivers to act. The campaign was set to launch after media buzz surrounding Reynolds’ film "Deadpool" subsided, however, Lippe Taylor recommended advancing the launch to leverage the public interest to ensure maximum exposure, allowing the campaign to break through media clutter.
At the heart of the initiative is a 90-second hero film accompanied by six intimate videos featuring Reynolds and his mother, Tammy where they candidly discuss their experiences caring for Ryan’s father. These personal stories shed light on the emotional toll of Parkinson’s-related hallucinations and delusions, offering validation and support to other caregivers facing similar challenges.
Robust digital marketing efforts expanded the campaign’s reach within the Parkinson’s community. On Meta platforms, Reynolds’ videos, supported by paid media, ran alongside educational posts explaining the effects of hallucinations and delusions. At launch, Reynolds shared the hero video with his 75+ million followers, sparking widespread awareness and conversation.
To further support caregivers and patients, partner agency Heartbeat revamped the More to Parkinson’s website, which now features resources including family and doctor discussion guides, a specialist locator tool, and caregiver stories. Influencers—including HCPs, patients, and caregivers—shared campaign content, directing audiences to the site and encouraging discussions with healthcare providers.
The campaign’s media strategy encompassed multiple channels. Connected TV platforms (Netflix, Roku, MNTN, Sling, Samsung TV, LG) broadcasted the campaign videos to achieve greater reach, while earned media efforts played a pivotal role, launching with an exclusive feature in People magazine and a high-profile interview with Willie Geist on the Today Show. Additional coverage in outlets like USA Today and Prevention further amplified visibility. These media hits were reshared across More to Parkinson’s social platforms, extending the campaign’s reach and reinforcing its message.
By strategically aligning with a cultural moment and harnessing Reynolds' personal connection to Parkinson’s, the "More to Parkinson’s" campaign effectively spotlighted the disease’s non-motor symptoms and inspired caregivers to recognize early signs of hallucinations and delusions and seek timely medical guidance—helping patients and families navigate Parkinson’s with greater understanding and support.
The campaign has driven widespread awareness with a significant increase in traffic to both the unbranded and branded websites and encouraged patients and caregivers to take high-value actions. The campaign received 31.8M impressions from unbranded organic social content and drove a 14,425% increase in social followers on More to Parkinson’s channels after launch. 7.1% of social viewers took high-value action including clicking to learn more about treatment options and downloading a doctor discussion guide. 4M+ views were generated from unbranded influencer content following the campaign launch with a total of 7K+ engagements.
Website traffic drove 169K+ visits, a 903% increase in weekly unique visitors, with 4-5x growth in high-value actions, nearly three-fold increase in PD patients who visited the branded website and subsequently visited a PD specialist in the 2 weeks post-launch.
Aided awareness of PD-related hallucinations and/or delusions rose from 49% to 67% among those with PD, with 3x more patients visiting specialist’s post-campaign. 69% of all patients are very familiar with non-motor symptoms of PD compared to 47% pre-campaign. There was also a 92.7% increase in traffic to the branded treatment website, showcasing the multi-faceted campaign met the objective to raise awareness among caregivers and patients that hallucinations and delusions can be caused by Parkinson’s disease and encourage caregivers to ask doctors as early as possible about managing symptoms.
