Lilly puts Simone Biles and her mother at the center of a Mounjaro TV campaign
A new Mounjaro TV spot features an Olympic gymnast and her mother, which may raise questions for patients about a drug Lilly says it is still working to produce in larger quantities.
Eli Lilly has built a television campaign for its type 2 diabetes drug Mounjaro (tirzepatide) around Olympic gymnast Simone Biles and her mother Nellie, the company's latest move in an Olympics-year marketing push [1].
The spot was reported on July 16, 2024, as the Paris Games approach at the end of the month [1]. Biles, a seven-time Olympic medalist, is one of seven athletes Lilly named to its Team USA roster for Paris. Lilly extended its deal with Team USA last year to cover the Paris 2024 and Los Angeles 2028 Games [1].
Neither woman matches the profile of a typical Mounjaro patient. Simone Biles does not have type 2 diabetes. Her mother does, but Nellie Biles does not take Mounjaro, and Lilly still tapped the pair for the TV spot [1].
The ad opens on a close-up of Simone's face as she prepares to start a gymnastics routine. In voiceover, Nellie says, "my daughter works hard and so do people with type 2 diabetes," then asks, "if their efforts aren't enough, could people do diabetes differently?" [1] A voiceover in the middle of the commercial covers Mounjaro's benefits and risks over footage of Nellie, Simone's floor routine and the audience. The spot ends with Simone walking toward the camera alongside her mother and saying, "you can do diabetes differently, with Mounjaro" [1].
Lilly is running the campaign while supply remains a limiting factor. On an April earnings call, chief financial officer Anat Ashkenazi told investors the company expects "sales growth to primarily be a function of the quantities we can produce and ship" in the short to midterm [1]. In June, Patrik Jonsson, president of Lilly diabetes and obesity, told an investor event that the FDA had removed two Mounjaro doses from the drug shortage list, adding, "I think we are seeing the light at the end of the tunnel" [1].
Why it matters for patients
People who watch the Olympics are likely to see a prescription drug promoted by a celebrity who does not use it and whose family connection to type 2 diabetes is her mother's diagnosis, not her own treatment [1]. The ad itself notes benefits and risks, but a commercial is not a substitute for a clinical discussion about whether a GLP-1 medicine is appropriate for a given person.
Availability is the practical question. Lilly has said its sales are limited by how much it can make and ship, and advertising could create demand the company cannot yet meet [1]. The article does not say which two Mounjaro doses came off the FDA shortage list, or whether other doses remain listed. It also does not give a timeline for when supply is expected to catch up.
Patients on Mounjaro, or considering it, may also notice that the campaign is framed around type 2 diabetes rather than weight loss. The ad's closing line — "you can do diabetes differently" — is marketing language; the article does not describe what clinical difference the campaign is referring to beyond the drug's approved diabetes use [1].
What happens next
The Paris Games begin at the end of July 2024, and Lilly's Team USA agreement runs through the Los Angeles Games in 2028 [1]. Whether the company releases more ads featuring Biles, and how the FDA's shortage list for Mounjaro changes in the coming months, has not been reported [1].
Sources
Semaglutides.org provides information only, not medical advice. Talk to a licensed provider about your own care before making changes. Some telehealth links are affiliate links and are labeled where they appear.