Since her diagnosis with ADHD as an adult, Paris Hilton has been using her celebrity to
draw attention to neurodiversity. Hilton describes ADHD as her “superpower” because it allows her to see things in ways others can’t.
She recently launched a new animated children’s series, “Paris & Pups,” featuring a 12-
year-old version of Hilton, her five pups and their adventures living at the Fabulexe
Hotel. Paris and one of her dogs, Slivington, have ADHD, which creates opportunities to
demonstrate how to handle daily challenges.
The show is produced by Hilton’s media company, 11:11 Media, in collaboration with
Understood.org, a nonprofit that provides free content and digital tools to help
neurodivergent people of all ages. Understood.org has released a free companion
guide for one episode to help teachers and parents use the series to discuss ADHD.
Andrew Kahn, Understood’s lead clinical consultant, helped in the development of
the characters and storylines. Professionally, Kahn is a licensed psychologist who has
worked as a consultant, evaluator and trainer for schools. Personally, he identifies as
neurodivergent and grew up without services or diagnostics.
Kahn describes working with Hilton, 11:11 Media and HappyNest Production on the
show as a “joyous partnership.”
Hilton had already worked with Understood.org on a stigma reduction project, Kahn
said.
“Because our work had been so productive, she asked if we would consult to help
create characters and authenticity,” he said.
Kahn said the goal was to avoid stereotypes but to present information about what
ADHD presents in various ways, poses distinct challenges, exhibits differences, and possesses its own unique strengths.
For instance, children with ADHD can experience “time blindness,” which is difficulty
understanding how time passes, making time management challenging.
Understood.org created the “Star Tracker,” a way to track tasks, the “Picture it Poster” to
visualize goals and Chill Skills, a breathing exercise to achieve calmness.
“The beauty of the storylines is that we focus on strengths in terms of problem-solving.
Paris and Slivington figure it out together,” Kahn said. “We want to help both kids and
adults move from understanding to comprehension and thriving.”
Kahn said that research shows that children between the ages of 2 and 5 are already
forming biases.
“Paris & Pups” creates storylines and character arcs as the characters build skills. They
learn skills together, and it’s a conversation starter for parents and teachers,” Kahn said.
Children’s media either show these differences in a negative light or not at all.
“When I was growing up, I would imitate what I saw on shows. If they played basketball,
I would play basketball. I mimicked what I saw,” Kahn said. “In ‘Paris & Pups,’ we can
bring out positive traits and how they are manifested in daily lives.”
Kahn said the first season features short-platform episodes of about 5 minutes. Longer-
format episodes and a companion book are in the works.
“The reception has been fantastic,” Kahn said. “I think ‘Paris & Pups’ will be here to stay
for a good long while. Children need to see representations of characters with
differences in a positive light. If done sensitively, it provides them with new ways to think
about themselves or others.
“The show brings me optimism. It’s fun and entertaining, but it also teaches them the
skills they need to be successful and kind to themselves and others. And it shows them
that having differences isn’t going to prevent me from being who I want to be.”