The Blind Side may have given Sandra Bullock’s career a boost, but Michael Oher, the young man who is the main character in the movie says it didn’t do his career any favors.
The film, released in 2009, earned $300 million along with an Oscar award and Golden Globe for lead actress, Sandra Bullock. However, Carolina Panthers’ football player Michael Oher, whose life served as the basis for the film, said in an interview with ESPN, said the film has hurt his football career.
The Blind Side recounts Oher’s journey from homeless teen to first-round NFL draft pick. Although Oher’s career started off on a good note with the Baltimore Ravens, he has since struggled and believes it’s because his biopic prompts unfair criticism of him. He shared with the sports media outlet, “This stuff, calling me a bust, people saying if I can play or not … that has nothing to do with football. It’s something else off the field. That’s why I don’t like that movie.” Oher made these comments after it was reported that he and his teammate Kony Ealy had a physical altercation.
When asked if he feels he has something to prove to his teammates, Oher stated: “I’m not trying to prove anything. People look at me, and they take things away from me because of a movie. They don’t really see the skills and the kind of player I am.”
Defending Oher’s comments, The Bleacher Report writes, “It’s not surprising to hear the guy who just wanted a safe place to sleep at night as a youth grow up to resent the movie that packaged him as a folk hero capable of football wizardry. After all, hype is hype, and trying to live up to your finest moments every day, in front of thousands, sounds like the most tiring job of all.”
Are you surprised by Oher’s comments?
