Twenty-four hours after it was learned former NFL offensive lineman Michael Oher filed a lawsuit against the Tuohy family for lying about adopting him in high school and profiting off his story, Sean Tuohy responded by saying the allegations are insulting and upsetting.
“I will say it’s upsetting that people would think I would want to make money off any of my children,” Sean Tuohy said.
The Blind Side Generated A Lot Of “Good Will”
Oher’s story became legend as a result of the 2009 movie “The Blind Side” where Oher, played by actor Quinton Aaron, was adopted by the Tuohy family Sean and his wife Leigh Anne, played by Tim McGraw and Sandra Bullock.
All of the “good will”, fame, and apparent riches generated by that film are a lie, according to Oher.
In his filing he alleges that Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy never adopted him and “falsely advised” him to sign a document in 2004 that made them his conservators — giving them the legal power to complete business deals in his name — after he turned 18 years old.
He accuses the Tuohys of having “enriched themselves” and profited from the “lie” by taking their life story to the big screen.
“It’s upsetting to think we would make money off any of our children,” Sean Tuohy continued. “But we’re going to love Michael at 37 just like we loved him at 16.”
Sean Tuohy claims the family never made money off the movie but then clarified his statement.
Did The Tuohys Make Money Off The Movie?
“We didn’t make any money off the movie,” said Tuohy. “‘The Blind Side’ book author Michael Lewis gave us half of his share. Everybody in the family got an equal share, including Michael. It was about $14,000, each. We were never offered money; we never asked for money.”
There seems to be some contradiction there and Sean Tuohy and Michael Lewis’ relationship is not scrutinized enough. The two were classmates back in high school.
Whether the Tuohys directly received money as a result of the movie seems like it’s layered. But what is undeniable, the family became celebrities as a result of the movie, and used that to their advantage, financial or otherwise.
As for the Tuohys serving as conservators and not adoptive parents, Sean offers an explanation.
“They said the only way Michael could go to Ole Miss was if he was actually part of the family,” Sean Tuohy said. “I sat Michael down and told him, ‘If you’re planning to go to Ole Miss — or even considering Ole Miss — we think you have to be part of the family. This would do that, legally.’ We contacted lawyers who had told us that we couldn’t adopt over the age of 18; the only thing we could do was to have a conservatorship.”
Sean Tuohy is an Ole Miss alumnus and has been an active booster of the university’s athletics.
