Michael Oher is NFL star from 'The Blind Side' who has made claim against family
Former NFL player Michael Oher's life was turned into an Oscar-nominated film called The Blind Side, but the 37-year-old has begun legal action over papers he signed nearly 20 years ago, filing a petition in a Tennessee court accusing Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy of lying to him to become his conservators.
Oher, a one-time Super Bowl winner, believed that the papers made the Tuohys his adoptive parents. However, the 23rd overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft now wants the agreement terminated and wants compensation for the money made off his name and story, accusing the Tuohys of "falsely and publicly" representing themselves as his adoptive parents.
The Blind Side showed the Tuohys taking in Oher when he was a homeless teenager and supporting him through school and his love of football.
Oher says he found out in February of this year that the conservatorship that he signed gave him "no familial relationship".
"At no point did the Tuohys inform Michael that they would have ultimate control of all his contracts, and as a result Michael did not understand that if the conservatorship was granted, he was signing away his right to contract for himself," the petition claims. It is claimed that the rights to Oher's story were handed over for £176,000 ($225,000) plus 2.5 percent of future proceeds, with the film reportedly making more than £235million ($300m) worldwide. The Tuohys are yet to officially respond to the allegations but will provide the court with a response.
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Following high school, Oher received scholarship offers from Tennessee, LSU, Alabama, Auburn, and South Carolina, but he decided to attend the University of Mississippi, the old school of the Tuohys. The 6ft4 offensive tackle was recognized as a unanimous All-American in 2009 and graduated with a degree in criminal justice.
The Baltimore Ravens then drafted Oher in the 2009 draft, a pick that they acquired from the New England Patriots, and the Tuohy family were present for his NFL drafting. Ohersigned a five-year, £10.8m ($13.8m) contract with Baltimore and helped the franchise win the Super Bowl for the 2012 season.
The one-time Super Bowl winner has accused Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy of lying to him to become his conservators (Getty)In 2014, Oher signed a four-year, £15.7m ($20m) contract with the Tennessee Titans but he lasted just one year with the team, being cut in February the following year. Oher wasn't without a team for long, though, penning a two-year contract with the Carolina Panthers the next month.
He featured in a career-second Super Bowl with the Panthers but was on the losing team. Carolina lost to the Denver Broncos 24-10.
A three-year contract extension was signed but Oher only went on to play three times in 2016 due to a concussion and a failed medical in 2017 spelled the end of his NFL career.
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