I didn’t have “Michael Oher attempting to shake down the family who gave him an amazing life which propelled him to sports stardom” on my 2023 bingo card this year, but then again I don’t think anybody could have ever thought that the beloved family and their wayward football savant that inspired the film “The Blind Side” could have ever been soured in such a terrible way.
Michael Oher via KENS 5: Your San Antonio News Source YouTube, screenshot
The rift between former NFL player Michael Oher and the Tuohy family, who were portrayed in the 2009 film, has deepened with recent accusations of blackmail. Michael Oher is alleged to have demanded $15 million from the Tuohys to keep quiet about details of his ‘adoption.’
The Tuohys’ attorney, Martin Singer, countered these claims, labeling them as “hurtful and absurd.” He asserted that Oher received an equitable share from the film, which made over $300 million.
While the Tuohys have stressed the difference between Oher’s conservatorship and legal adoption, Sean Tuohy Jr. claims to have text evidence from 2020 that refutes Oher’s allegations about not being a legally adopted son. A significant revelation from Oher’s memoir, “I Beat The Odds: From Homelessness, to The Blind Side, and Beyond,” suggests that he was well aware of the nature of his relationship with the Tuohy family, recognizing them as family despite the technicalities of the legal wording.
Michael Oher via The Jim Rome Show YouTube, screenshot
Now, it seems that Sean and Leigh Ann Tuohy, the couple that brought him into their home as a teen to raise him, have had enough of this and have decided to officially end their conservatorship, and essentially their relationship, with Oher for good.
“They [The Touhys] insisted that any money received be divided equally. And they have made good on that pledge,” Singer said in a statement.
“The evidence — documented in profit participation checks and studio accounting statements — is clear: over the years, the Tuohys have given Mr. Oher an equal cut of every penny received from ‘The Blind Side.’ Even recently, when Mr. Oher started to threaten them about what he would do unless they paid him an eight-figure windfall, and, as part of that shakedown effort refused to cash the small profit checks from the Tuohys, they still deposited Mr. Oher’s equal share into a trust account they set up for his son.”
Leigh Anne Tuohy via CBN News YouTube, screenshot
Oher’s lawyers have not responded to the allegations that he attempted to blackmail them for $15 million.
As of now, after a terrible week for all parties involved in was once deemed to be a pop culture hit that inspired many, this sad story might finally be over for good.
Michael Oher, formerly with the Baltimore Ravens, played 110 games across eight NFL seasons. He stopped playing in 2016 and is currently promoting his new book.