The Blind Side Was Based on This Man’s Story, Now He Claims It All Was a Lie
The movie showed a touching relationship between foster parents and a teenager, but according to the latter, he was simply exploited.
Sandra Bullock is one of the most sought-after and popular actresses in Hollywood, but she received her first Oscar only in 2010 for the role in the biographical drama The Blind Side, in which the actress played the guardian of football genius Michael Oher.
The touching on-screen relationship between Bullock's character and Michael impressed viewers.
But Oher was dissatisfied and shared his feelings back in 2011:
“I felt like it portrayed me as dumb. […] I could not figure out why the director chose to show me as someone who had to be taught the game of football. […] I watched those scenes thinking, 'No, that's not me at all! I've been studying — really studying — the game since I was a kid!'”
In addition to these words, Oher claimed that he did not receive a cent from the movie, despite the fact that the sports drama has collected $309 million at the worldwide box office.
Oher has now petitioned a Tennessee court to end his legal relationship with his adoptive family, claiming he was never actually adopted and was tricked into relinquishing decision-making power so the family could make millions of dollars off his life story.
Michael is seeking an end to a guardianship that began when he was 18 years old. He also wants the money he should have made from the movie.
The 14-page petition alleges that Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy, who took Oher into their home when he was in high school, never adopted him. Instead, less than three months after Oher turned 18 in 2004, the petition says, the couple tricked him into signing a document making them his guardians, giving them legal authority to do business on his behalf.
Legal documents say he learned in February of this year that the guardianship, which he agreed to on the grounds that it would make him a member of the Tuohy family, did not in fact provide him with any family relationship.
The documents allege that the family negotiated a deal to buy the rights to his story for $225,000 plus 2.5% of future earnings.
Tuohy's attorney declined to comment, but said they would provide the court with a response to the allegations.
Source: NPR