Topics: Celebrity, Film and TV, US News, Michael Oher, The Blind Side, Parenting
The star of 2009 movie The Blind Side has said he still believes the film's message is a force for good despite recent controversy over the movie.
Claiming to be based on the real-life story of Michael Oher, the movie has recently attracted backlash from Oher himself as he claimed that the adoption plot shown in the film was a lie.
In the movie, Michael (Quinton Aaron) is adopted by Sean (Tim McGraw) and Leigh Anne Tuhoy (Sandra Bullock), but the real Michael recently petitioned a court in Tennessee with allegations that the adoption didn't actually happen.
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Claiming that the story of adoption was 'concocted by the family to enrich themselves at his expense', and it never actually took place, the 37-year-old said the Tuhoy family 'tricked him' into signing documents that granted them conservatorship over him.
Instead of a wholesome adoption into a new loving family as the movie portrays, Oher is claiming that the family gained the legal authority to make deals in his name.
The Tuhoy family have denied any wrongdoing, calling the allegations 'insulting', while The Blind Side star Aaron said it was 'heartbreaking' to hear the claims.
Speaking to People, Aaron said he still feels very positive about the movie's message despite the recent controversy, as people still recognise him from it and say The Blind Side 'changed their lives and in such a positive way'.
He said: "No, it doesn't, because I feel like in the movie, not all facts are gonna be… not all of the story is gonna be a hundred percent [true] anyway.
"We're in the business of entertaining, and sometimes, there's certain liberties that are taken from either the writer or producer or the creator standpoint to make the film [appealing] to a certain audience."
"And I think in doing so, they successfully put out something that has motivated an entire generation of people to do good."
He said he thought the movie served 'a greater purpose than anyone could have hoped for' with its message, saying he didn't see 'a bunch of statements out there with people saying The Blind Side ruined their life'.
Sandra Bullock, who won an Oscar for her part in The Blind Side, likewise said she was 'heartbroken' by Oher's claims in his lawsuit.
The lawsuit claims that in 2004, Oher signed documents he thought were adoption papers, but were instead authorization for the Tuhoys to become his conservators.
It says: "The conservatorship to which he consented on the basis that doing so would make him a member of the Tuohy family, in fact, provided 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."
