“The Blind Side” Legal Drama: Michael Oher Speaks Out
Memphis couple Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy plan to voluntarily terminate their conservatorship over Michael Oher, the couple’s attorney Randall Fishman told reporters Aug. 16, per the Associated Press.
The decision comes just days after new broke that the former NFL player, whose life story was depicted in the Oscar-winning 2009 film The Blind Side, filed a petition challenging the agreement.
E! News has reached out to Oher’s attorney for comment in response and has not heard back.
The move comes just one day after another lawyer for the couple, Marty Singer, said in a statement to E! News Aug. 15 that “should Mr. Oher wish to terminate the conservatorship, either now or at anytime in the future, the Tuohys will never oppose it in any way.” However, the attorney also alleged that the athlete was using the lawsuit as a “shakedown effort” and that his claims about the family are “outlandish.”
In his petition, filed in a Tennessee court Aug. 14 and obtained by E! News, Oher alleged that the Tuohys lied about adopting him when he was a high school student and that after he turned 18 in 2004, they “falsely advised” him to sign a document that made them his conservators as part of the process, giving them the legal power to complete business deals in his name.
Scott Cunningham/Getty Images/Dimitrios Kambouris/VF1/WireImage
“Michael trusted the Tuohys and signed where they told him to sign,” the petition states. “What he signed, however, and unknown to Michael until after February 2023, were not adoption papers, or the equivalent of adoption papers.”
In his filing, the athlete, now 37, requested that his conservatorship should be terminated because of the Tuohys’ alleged failure to perform their duties and obligations and act in his best interest and also because he “is not under any disability that requires a conservator.”
He further asserted in the documents that he is “capable of handling his own affairs.”
“Blind Side” Star Defends Sandra Bullock From Critics
Oher also noted in the petition that while the Tuohys negotiated contracts for themselves and their two biological children to receive $225,000 each, plus 2.5 percent of the film’s “defined net proceeds,” from The Blind Side, he received no compensation for signing the rights to his life story.
But Sean told the Daily Memphian, “We didn’t make any money off the movie,” explaining that instead, Michael Lewis, who wrote the book the film is based on, split his profit from selling the movie rights with the Tuohy family and that “everybody in the family got an equal share, including Michael. It was about $14,000 each.”
The 2009 film grossed more than $300 million and stars Quinton Aaron as Oher and Sandra Bullock, who earned an Oscar for her performance as Leigh Anne.
One day after the news of his filing became public, Oher broke his silence in a statement shared by his lawyers.
“I am disheartened by the revelation shared in the lawsuit today,” he said in Aug. 15 statement to E! News. “This is a difficult situation for my family and me. I want to ask everyone to please respect our privacy at this time. For now, I will let the lawsuit speak for itself and will offer no further comment.”
To see photos of the Tuohy family and Michael throughout the years, keep reading…
Stephen Lovekin/Getty Images
The Blind Side Premiere
Collins Tuohy, Sean Tuohy Jr., Leigh Anne Tuohy and Sean Tuohy got dressed up for the 2009 New York premiere of The Blind Side, the movie based on their life with adoptive son Michael Oher, who became a pro football player.
Steve Granitz/WireImage
Oscars Night
The longtime couple walked the red carpet at the 2010 Academy Awards in Los Angeles in honor of The Blind Side, which earned actress Sandra Bullock an Oscar that year for playing Leigh Anne.
Donna Svennevik/Disney General Entertainment Content via Getty Images
The View Appearance
Michael Oher promoted his book I Beat the Odds on The View in 2011.
Skip Bolen/WireImage
Real-Life Inspiration
Sandra Bullock posed with Leigh Anne, who she played onscreen, at a Blind Side benefit event in New Orleans in 2009.
Jim Spellman/WireImage
The Heat Premiere
Sean, Leigh Anne and Collins attended the movie’s New York premiere in 2013.
Wedding Day
Michael tied the knot with Tiffany Roy in November 2022. “Filled with joy, can’t believe people took their time and came to celebrate!” the former NFL player captioned a photo of the ceremony. “My beautiful wife, I love you so much, thank you for blessing me with our family! Easily the best single weekend I’ve ever been apart of.”
Taylor Hill/FilmMagic
CMT Music Awards
Leigh Anne and and Sean brought daughter Collins to the 2010 CMT Music Awards, where Carrie Underwood was a big winner.
Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic
The Trio Together
The group posed for a photo at the Nashville event.
Legacy Lives On
Oher stopped by the Walk of Champions at Ole Miss in April 2023. “Glad to see my name’s still there,” he wrote. “Class of ‘09, represent (‘08 football season). I got to take a tour of the new facilities under construction.”
Collins’ Date Night
The marketing expert shared a photo with her husband Cannon Smith at the Old Florida Fish House
in July 2023. “Sweaty faces and full hearts,” Collins wrote on social media. “It’s a hot one down here, but we are having the best time. This restaurant is an oldie but goodie. We always eat here at least once. Best sushi.”
Roy Rochlin/Getty Images
New York Interview
Michael stopped by SiriusXM Studios in NYC on Aug. 9, 2023.
Mom-Daughter Moment
“Always know football season is right around the corner when it hits LAT’s birthday,” Collins wrote on Instagram in August 2023 alongside a throwback photo. “Today is the day… Happy Birthday Mom!! Love you!”
Family Photo
The football pro shared a pic with his loved ones in March 2023, writing, “Life is Beautiful‼️#family #life #growth.”
Dimitrios Kambouris/VF1/WireImage
White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner After-Party
The pair, who got married in 1982, went to an after-party hosted by Bloomberg and Vanity Fair party following the 2010 White House Correspondents dinner in Washington, DC.
Book Release
Michael geared up for the release of his book When Your Back’s Against the Wall in August 2023.
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