Former NFL Player Michael Oher Talks About His Lawsuit Against the Tuohy Family and ‘The Blind Side’
Michael Oher, a retired NFL player, is sharing insights about his experiences, including a legal battle with the family that welcomed him as a teen and the film “The Blind Side,” which brought him widespread fame.
At 38, Oher has filed a lawsuit against Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy, the Memphis couple who became his guardians. This action also resulted in an end to the conservatorship that had lasted over 20 years.
In his lawsuit, Oher claims the Tuohys and their children earned roughly $8 million by using his name and image, particularly through speaking events and by presenting themselves as his adoptive parents. The Tuohys have rejected these allegations.
Oher expresses that there are emotional differences between Black families and white families.
“The first time I heard someone say ‘I love you,’ it was from Sean and Leigh Anne. Hearing those words at 18 made me vulnerable,” Oher shared with The New York Times Magazine. “You let your defenses down, and then, it feels as if everything is taken away. It leads to pain.”
“I don’t intend for this to be a racial conversation, yet I noticed that coaches and white individuals express ‘I love you’ more frequently. When Black individuals say it, they truly mean it.”
Despite playing eight seasons in the NFL with teams like the Baltimore Ravens, Tennessee Titans, and Carolina Panthers, Oher feels the 2009 film, “The Blind Side,” based on Michael Lewis’s book, depicted him unfavorably.
“It’s difficult to put my feelings into words,” Oher remarked. “To be honest, it felt absurd, almost like a comedy about someone else. It didn’t hit me at first. However, as social media began to take off, I saw people calling me dumb or stupid. Every article about me included ‘The Blind Side,’ as if it was my identity.”
Oher admits that he skipped the movie’s premiere, watching it only a month later.
Currently, Oher is married and the father of five. He has started a foundation that aims to fund scholarships for children in Nashville.
“For a long time, I struggled with anger mentally,” Oher reflected. “I want to return to who I was before ‘The Blind Side’ in terms of my personality. I’m still on that journey.”
