AbbVie maintains top TV ad spend spot with Skyrizi but sees Rinvoq fall behind J&J's Tremfya, Novo's Wegovy

AbbVie closed out the year on a high note as its blockbuster biologic Skyrizi once again claimed the top spot in 2024’s final monthly ranking of the biggest TV ad spenders in biopharma.

Skyrizi reigned supreme in most months of 2024, including in a three-month stretch to close out the year. Though it was often joined at the top of the list throughout the year by fellow AbbVie offering Rinvoq, that wasn’t the case in December, when Rinvoq fell two spots as its TV ad spending dropped from $44.6 million in November to $37.2 million a month later, according to iSpot.TV’s analysis.

That left room for Johnson & Johnson’s Tremfya to jump up to the second spot, while Novo Nordisk’s megapopular obesity med Wegovy—a recent addition to iSpot.TV’s pharma ad spending roundups—held steady at No. 3.

Next up, prostate cancer drug Pluvicto, a newcomer to the list in November, jumped two spots to take sixth, as Novartis bumped up TV ad spending for the radiotherapy from $21.3 million in November to $31.7 million last month. That knocked Sanofi and Regeneron’s Dupixent and Novo’s Ozempic each down a peg; their TV ad spend totals clocked in at $20.5 million and $18.4 million, respectively.

Rounding out December’s list was a trio of drugs absent from November’s roundup: Gilead Sciences’ PrEP drug Descovy, Incyte’s topical JAK inhibitor Opzelura, and Boehringer Ingelheim and Eli Lilly’s Type 2 diabetes drug Jardiance, the last of which previously took the seventh spot on this list in October.

All together, drugmakers threw $274.4 million behind TV ads for these top 10 drugs in December, only a slight dip from November’s massive $287.5 million total. Additionally, though the top TV network for each drug’s ad spend varied across the list, all 10 counted the NFL as their top TV program, according to the month’s analysis. 

Below, find the full data for December’s 10 biggest pharma ad spenders, as compiled by iSpot.TV.

1. Skyrizi
Movement: No change
What is it? AbbVie’s immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $48.2 million (up from $46.1 million in November)
Number of spots: Four (two psoriasis, two Crohn’s/ulcerative colitis)
Biggest-ticket ad: “In the Picture” (est. $26.3 million)

2. Tremfya 
Movement: Up two spots
What is it? Johnson & Johnson’s immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $41.7 million (up from $32.6 million in November)
Number of spots: Four (three psoriasis, one ulcerative colitis)
Biggest-ticket ad: “Break Away” (est. $26.8 million)

3. Wegovy 
Movement: No change
What is it? Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 agonist for obesity
Est. national TV ad spend: $40.3 million (down from $41.9 million in November)
Number of spots: One 
Biggest-ticket ad: “Discover the Power: $0” (est. $40.3 million)

4. Rinvoq 
Movement: Down two spots
What is it? AbbVie’s JAKi immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $37.2 million (down from $44.6 million in November)
Number of spots: Four (one arthritis, two ulcerative colitis/Crohn’s, one eczema)
Biggest-ticket ad: “Just Okay: Jet Ski” (est. $19.9 million)

5. Pluvicto
Movement: Up two spots
What is it? Novartis’ prostate cancer drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $31.7 million (up from $21.3 million in November)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “Perseverance” (est. $31.7 million)

6. Dupixent
Movement: Down one spot
What is it? Sanofi and Regeneron’s immunology drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $20.5 million (down from $28.6 million in November)
Number of spots: Six (two asthma, four eczema)
Biggest-ticket ad: “This Is Better: Roller Disco” (est. $9.2 million)

7. Ozempic
Movement: Down one spot
What is it? Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 agonist for diabetes
Est. national TV ad spend: $18.4 million (down from $21.4 million in November)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “Discover the Ozempic Tri-Zone: Boxing” (est. $18.4 million)

8. Descovy
Movement: Not listed last month
What is it? Gilead Sciences' HIV PrEP drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $15.6 million (up from $3.3 million in November)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “The Smallest PrEP Pill Available” (est. $15.5 million)

9. Opzelura
Movement: Not listed last month
What is it? Incyte’s topical JAK inhibitor
Est. national TV ad spend: $11.3 million (up from $4.6 million in November)
Number of spots: Two
Biggest-ticket ad: “When You Want Something: Pursue It” (est. $7.9 million)

10. Jardiance
Movement: Not listed last month
What is it? Eli Lilly and Boehringer Ingelheim’s diabetes drug
Est. national TV ad spend: $9.5 million (up from $8 million in November)
Number of spots: One
Biggest-ticket ad: “Musical: Store” (est. $9.5 million)