In a heartwarming first for the Hallmark Channel, real-life cardiac survivors are stepping into the spotlight this holiday season, bringing authentic medical experiences to the traditionally cheerful world of Christmas movies.
Hallmark’s new film “The More the Merrier” breaks new ground by featuring actual members of Abbott’s HeartMates community — including NFL player Damar Hamlin and several young heart patients who have overcome serious cardiovascular challenges with the help of Abbott medical devices. It’s the first Hallmark movie ever to include cameos from real individuals who have faced life-threatening heart conditions, according to Abbott.
From Real Life to the Small Screen
At the center of the film is a character named David, a 14-year-old heart patient inspired by real-life Abbott HeartMates member Zeke Mankins, who underwent open-heart surgery at age 12 to implant a Masters mechanical heart valve. The movie portrays how David brings “unexpected joy and connection” to those around him — a theme that resonates deeply with the actual HeartMates community’s mission of support and inspiration.
Buffalo Bills safety Damar Hamlin, whose on-field cardiac arrest in January 2023 shocked the sports world, appears in the film as himself. Hamlin has served as a HeartMates ambassador since the program’s creation last year and has been actively traveling to hospitals nationwide to recruit members and share his remarkable comeback story.
“Going through a heart health event can be isolating, but having people around you who know what you’ve been through can make all the difference,” Hamlin said. “That’s why I teamed up with Abbott to be an ambassador for their HeartMates program and build a community of support.”
Real Patients, Real Stories
What makes this movie particularly unique? It features actual Abbott HeartMates members with compelling stories of survival:
Ten-year-old Tony Daly from Las Vegas, born at just under 27 weeks, became the first baby in the world to receive an Abbott Amplatzer Piccolo Occluder to close a hole in his heart. Sixteen-year-old Jaden Hartley from Chicago received a left ventricular assist device (LVAD) after experiencing sudden heart failure at age 14 while on vacation. And nine-year-old Rian Krauth from Minneapolis was treated with an Amplatzer Septal Occluder at age 2 to repair a hole in her heart that caused blood to flow in the wrong direction.
The film also features 19-year-old MacKenzie Maddry from Arkansas, who survived both bone cancer and heart failure, receiving an LVAD before her heart transplant at age 17, and 18-year-old Zeke Mankins from Dallas, whose story inspired the movie’s young protagonist. All these young people appear in the film, bringing authenticity to a genre often criticized for its formulaic approach.
A New Kind of Partnership
This collaboration marks Hallmark’s first integration with a healthcare company. To ensure medical accuracy, Abbott health experts and cardiologists consulted on the script — an unusual step for a channel known more for romantic holiday narratives than medical realism.
“Our HeartMates program was created to provide a community for people impacted by heart health challenges and to demonstrate that health struggles don’t have to define anyone,” Melissa Brotz, senior vice president of Global Marketing and External Affairs at Abbott, explained.
Heart disease impacts a staggering 128 million American adults. Could entertainment be a new frontier for raising awareness? That’s certainly what Abbott is betting on with this unprecedented collaboration.
Building a Heart Health Community
The HeartMates program, launched in 2023, creates what Abbott calls “a supportive space” for individuals pursuing their own cardiac comeback stories, as well as for caregivers and medical teams. Earlier this year, Hamlin hosted a HeartMates “Draft Day” where he recognized 11 people and their caregivers who had overcome cardiovascular conditions.
“Draft Day was one of the most exciting and memorable days of my life,” Hamlin reflected. “Today I am inspired by the amazing bravery and resilience of each of the Abbott HeartMates and hope they feel just as I did on the day I was drafted.”
Former NFL player Tedy Bruschi, himself a HeartMates team member who survived a stroke, has emphasized the importance of sharing diverse survivor stories. “Anyone can be impacted by a heart condition,” Bruschi noted. “That’s why it is so important to not only raise awareness about the signs and symptoms of heart disease, stroke and other ailments, but also share diverse stories of survivor comeback journeys.”
For Hamlin, whose own cardiac event thrust him into an unexpected role as a heart health advocate, the mission is deeply personal. “After experiencing a cardiovascular event that changed my life, I know the power and importance of having an engaged team to lean on for mental and physical recovery,” he shared when first joining the initiative.
As Hallmark viewers tune in for their annual dose of holiday cheer, they’ll find something a bit more meaningful this year — real stories of resilience nestled among the snow-covered small towns and Christmas decorations. And for the HeartMates community members seeing themselves represented on screen, it’s a different kind of holiday magic altogether.
