The Tuohy family is calling Michael Oher’s claims of deceit “outlandish” and “transparently ridiculous,” while also alleging this is not the former football player’s first attempt to bring legal action against them.
Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy declared in a prepared statement — co-authored by the couple and their legal team (Randy Fishman, Martin Singer and Steven Farese Sr.) and obtained by The Commercial Appeal on Tuesday — that the notion their family’s relationship with the former Briarcrest Christian, Ole Miss and NFL star was motivated by selfishness “hurtful and absurd.”
“It’s just sad and upsetting and distressful,” Farese told The Commercial Appeal, part of the USA TODAY Network, adding the family is “in the infancy of its defense.
“Right now, it’s more of a mental struggle for the Tuohys to have to withstand this initial wave. But, after the truth comes out, it’ll be pretty cut and dry.”
Oher filed a petition in Shelby County probate court Monday seeking to end the Tuohys’ conservatorship of his name and financial dealings that helped his life story become a book and hit film. In 2009, “The Blind Side” — an Academy Award-nominated movie based on a book written by Michael Lewis — was released in theaters and made more than $300 million.
The petition said Oher — who was led to believe the 2004 papers he signed were necessary for the Tuohys to adopt him — never received money from the movie’s proceeds and that the Tuohys earned millions of dollars. The Tuohys said Tuesday they received “a small advance from the production company and a tiny percentage of net profits.”
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According to the petition, Oher was never adopted, and the Tuohys negotiated a one-time payment of $225,000 with 20th Century Fox, plus 2.5% of all “defined net proceeds” from the movie for themselves and their two natural-born children.
“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,’ ” the Tuohys’ statement reads.
The Tuohys also say this is not the first time Oher — whose most recent book, “When Your Back’s Against the Wall: Fame, Football, and Lessons Learned through a Lifetime of Adversity” was published last week — has sought legal action against them.
“Unbeknownst to the public, Mr. Oher has actually attempted to run this play several times before — but it seems that numerous other lawyers stopped representing him once they saw the evidence and learned the truth,” the Tuohys’ statement reads. “Sadly, Mr. Oher has finally found a willing enabler and filed this ludicrous lawsuit as a cynical attempt to drum up attention in the middle of his latest book tour.”
According to the Tuohys, Oher recently threatened them “about what he would do unless they paid him an eight-figure windfall.”
“Even recently . . . (when Oher) 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,” the family’s statement reads.
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The Tuohys say they are “heartbroken” by the situation, would never oppose Oher if he wanted to end their conservatorship, and are willing to reconcile with Oher. But they “will not hesitate to defend their good names, stand up to this shakedown and defeat this offensive lawsuit.”
“I am disheartened by the revelation shared in the lawsuit today,” Oher said in a prepared statement released Monday. “This is a difficult situation for my family and me. I want to ask everyone to please respect our privacy at this time. For now, I will let the lawsuit speak for itself and will offer no further comment.”
Reach sports writer Jason Munz at jason.munz@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @munzly.
