The family who took in former NFL star Michael Oher, inspiring the Oscar-nominated film “The Blind Side,” is under fire over a newly-surfaced clip of their appearance on reality TV show “Below Deck” — which critics say raised a massive “red flag.”
Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy appeared on the Bravo series, which follows the lives of crews of luxury yachts, in 2017.
The episode has now gone viral following Oher’s bombshell lawsuit alleging the Tuohys never officially adopted him and duped him out of millions of dollars made from his life story.
A clip from the ep, dug up and shared on TikTok by People magazine reporter Abigail Adams, shows Sean describing how he negotiated with Steven Spielberg and Harvey Weinstein for the rights to their story — and got script approval.
“So with the whole ‘The Blind Side’ drama going on right now, am I the only person that can’t stop thinking about this episode from ‘Below Deck?’” Adams begins in the viral TikTok.
“As if the movie wasn’t a red flag already, this was an even bigger one, in my opinion, naturally,” she says, adding sarcastically that the episode was called “Blindsided.”
The synopsis of the Oct. 17, 2017, episode describes the couple “as some pretty tough customers,” Adams says.
“The big thing I want to focus on is Sean Tuohy’s response to Captain Lee’s question about how ‘The Blind Side’ actually came about because it’s pretty interesting,” she continues.
Adams then shares a clip in which Sean discusses how he negotiated for the rights to the feel-good story that went on to be featured in the 2009 flick.
“I got a call from Steven Spielberg, Harvey Weinstein. I had to give them the rights to use our name. And I said, ‘I’ll give you the name if I get to read the script and then approve or unapproved,” Sean says on the show.
“So sure enough, seven months later we get an envelope in the mail and it’s the script,” he adds.
The People staffer posted the clip after Oher, 37, filed a lawsuit in Shelby County, Tenn., alleging that the couple tricked him into making them his conservators, rather than his adoptive parents, nearly two decades ago.
“Just some food for thought,” Adams concludes in the TikTok.
The ex-Baltimore Ravens Super Bowl winner claimed that the conservatorship allowed the couple to retain legal power over him and that they made millions of dollars from “The Blind Side” — which grossed $300 million at the box office while he got nothing.
He now wants the conservatorship terminated and is asking for a full accounting of the money earned off the use of his name, including the film, which stars Sandra Bullock, and the novel that inspired it.
What we know about Michael Oher’s lawsuit against the Tuohy family
Former NFL player Michael Oher, the subject of the hit movie “The Blind Side,” claims Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy never officially adopted him.
According to court papers, the Tuohys tricked Oher into signing over the legal authority to use his name in business deals after he turned 18.
The 37-year-old alleged the Tuohys used their conservatorship to make millions in royalties from the 2009 Oscar-nominated film.
“The lie of Michael’s adoption is one upon which Co-Conservators Leigh Anne Tuohy and Sean Tuohy have enriched themselves at the expense of their Ward [Oher],” the legal filing said.
Sean Tuohy spoke out against the claims, saying the conservatorship was made to ensure that Oher was eligible to play football at the University of Mississippi.
Oher wants to end the Tuohys’ conservatorship and secure an injunction barring them from using his name and likeness.
He also wants an accounting of the money they’ve already earned off his name, a fair share of the profits, and punitive damages.
Sean Tuohy claims that because Oher was 18 when his family wanted to take him in, they were no longer able to adopt him and needed to enter a conservatorship instead.
The couple has denied they kept the conservatorship a secret from Oher, said they are “devastated” by his allegations, and have even claimed he demanded $15 million from them and threatened to go public, according to TMZ.
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