Annie Walton Doyle
People are calling for Sandra Bullock to have her Oscar revoked over a major movie controversy.
A heated debate has erupted over Sandra Bullock’s Oscar-winning performance in a 2009 film.
“I demand we revoke Sandra Bullock’s Oscar,” one social media user writes.
Another agrees: “They need to take away Sandra Bullock’s Oscar.”
A third adds: “TAKE THE OSCAR back from Sandra Bullock and give it to Gabourey Sidibe for Precious.”
In the film The Blind Side, Bullock portrays Leigh Anne Tuohy, the matriarch of the family that took in Michael Oher, a homeless teenager who went on to become a successful NFL player.
The movie, based on true events, was nominated for Best Picture, and Bullock won the Oscar for Best Actress for her performance.
But in 2023, Oher filed a lawsuit accusing the Tuohy family of deception.
In the suit, he alleged that the Tuohy family, who took him in during his high school years and whose story is central to the film, misled and financially exploited him.
This legal battle has cast a shadow over the narrative celebrated in the movie, prompting some to question the legitimacy of Bullock’s Oscar.
Some members of the public have expressed outrage, suggesting that Bullock should have her Oscar for her role in The Blind Side rescinded.
The connection between these events is tenuous at best, but that hasn’t deterred people from making it.
Legal documents stated that, in February 2023, Oher discovered that the conservatorship he agreed to, believing it would make him a family member, did not establish a 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 lawsuit claimed, per Hollywood Reporter.
The lawsuit also alleges that the Tuohy family signed a movie deal for the rights to Oher’s story for $225,000 plus 2.5 percent of future proceeds, but asserts that Oher himself ‘at no time ever willingly or knowingly signed this document.’
He also claims that he never received any money from the movie.
A Tennessee judge has since ended the conservatorship.
“We’re pleased with the proceedings this morning,” Don Barrett, an attorney for the former NFL star, told reporters per CNN.
The Tuohys claim that Oher never asked to terminate the conservatorship and they have always acted in his ‘best interest.’
They also assert that the money they received from the movie has been split equally between Sean and Leigh Anne, their two children, and Oher – each receiving 20%.
The pair maintain that Oher’s share was paid to him, but he denies this.
Michael Lewis, author of The Blind Side: Evolution of a Game, has defended Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy against the accusations against them.
Per the Independent, Lewis criticized Oher’s claims, saying: “What I feel really sad about is I watched the whole thing up close. They showered him with resources and love. That he’s suspicious of them is breathtaking. The state of mind one has to be in to do that. I feel sad for him.”
Lewis also claimed that Oher had begun declining royalty checks from the Tuohys, which he believes were instead deposited into a trust fund for the ex-football player’s son.
But now, it’s Bullock’s involvement in the story that has reignited a huge online debate…
Interestingly enough, Bullock has claimed that she was initially skeptical about her involvement in the movie.
The actress previously told Tribute Movies she originally turned down the role as Leigh Anne Tuohy as she was scared she wouldn’t do it justice.
She said in the resurfaced interview: “It was really scary. That’s why I just kept saying, ‘No’.”
“I said, ‘I don’t know how to find an in.’ I said, ‘There has to be a crack in the veneer to know why she’s like this.’ Once I felt a crack in the veneer and once I hired the dialect coach, the accent and dialect is easy but how she talks, the intent and energy behind her motivation every morning,” she explained.
“Unless you’re on that train you’re not going to pull it off. Everything we wore, the makeup was her.”
She added: “I thought I had it all but had nothing energy-wise compared to her.”
However, she claimed she was happy she did decide to take on the role.
“It was a good life experience, not just for the work. I felt like I came out of it just bigger. You felt fuller when you left this place that we got to stay in for a few months.”
While Bullock played Leigh Anne Tuohy in the film, there is no evidence to suggest she was aware of any details regarding Oher’s legal agreements with the family.
As an actor, her role was to perform the character she was given, a performance that earned her an Oscar.
The filing of the lawsuit does not diminish Bullock’s performance in The Blind Side, but some critics believe she should lose the award due to the allegations against the Tuohy family.
“So Sandra Bullock should have to give back her Oscar right, and man do we need to start checking these good feeling stories,” one person commented.
Another added: “Absolutely flabbergasted by this story. If it’s true Sandra Bullock should have her Best Actress Oscar vacated.”
Fortunately, some are defending Bullock in light of the lawsuit.
One supporter wrote: “I don’t know who needs to hear this but Sandra Bullock is an actress who took a job that ultimately led her to winning a top award in her craft. She had absolutely nothing to do with Michael Oher and the Tuohy family and should 100 per cent be excused from that narrative.”
A source has since spoken out to the Daily Mail about Bullock’s response to the controversy.
The insider revealed: “She hates that such a wonderful story, a spectacular movie, and a spectacular time in her life now has been tainted.
“Now people won’t watch it and if they do, they will have a completely different reaction to its original intention.”
The source added: “There was so much hard work put into the film that they all thought was the truth and now that has been questioned, it just upsets Sandra to no end that a time in her life that was so special, is now shadowed with a completely different perspective.”
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