How Much Of The Blind Side Is True?

Yes, The Blind Side was a true story. The sports drama is inspired by the book of the same name written by Michael Lewis in 2006.

The movie revolves around the real person Michael Oher essayed by Quinton Aaron. Michael was leading a traumatic life without the guidance and love of a guardian and proper education.

The young boy's life took a U-turn after he encountered the Tuohy family. By the grace of Leigh Anne Tuohy, played by Sandra Bullock, and Sean characterized by Tim McGraw, Michael's life got a redirection.

Later in life, he went on to become an NFL player. Although the movie was highly praised for depicting real-life events, many elements were fictionalized to make it an interesting watch.

For instance, in real life, Leigh Anne Tuohy, the adoptive mother of Big Mike did not meet Oher on the street. She met Oher at his school for the first time.

Soon after, it was essayed that Oher got familiar with the Tuohy family but in actual life, it was hard for all of them to get along at first.

After spending much time together, Michael and Tuohys, including Sean Jr. and Collin built a loving and caring bond and became a family in the true sense.

Since the film has time limitations, not all part of his life was showcased. For example, the passing away of his father in prison was not shown.

It is true that Michael was homeless, with no blood-related family of his own. Nonetheless, he used to live back and forth between his foster families and a few friends.

Well, Leigh Anne did contribute a lot to shaping Big Mike's career, but there were several other factors that made him successful.

Oher used to love football as a kid. Compared to what was shown in the picture, Oher had a lot of knowledge regarding the game because he self-studied it as a little boy.

The school he actually went to is not Wingate Christian School, it is Briarcrest Christian School. To get enrolled into the Briarcrest Christain School, Michael had to do difficult assignments.

With his academic knowledge and also his coach's support, he got admission. The Blind Side became a blockbuster in the year of its release.

It won not only hearts but prestigious awards like the Oscars, and Golden Globe. To this day, it remains one of the best sports movies out there.

However, Oher himself was quite disappointed with the way the movie was made. Two years after the release of the sports drama, he published a book titled 'I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness to The Blind Side, and Beyond'.

In this book, Big Mike talked about his side of the story, and the facts that were missed in the film.

The Blind Side takes place in the Hurt Village of Memphis, Tennessee in the United States of America. The protagonist Oher grew up in West Memphis.

He was born on the 28th of May in Tennessee. That is why, this became the real-life location of Michael Oher's story.

The Hurt Village was infamous for gang violence, drugs, and crime scenes. It was not an ideal place to raise a family.

Where Was The Blind Side Filmed?

The Blind Side was filmed in Atlanta and Decatur, Georgia from the 13th of April 2009 to 7 June 2009 per IMDB. The school scenes were shot at Atlanta International School located in Buckhead, Georgia.

Also, some portions were filmed at The Westminster Schools situated on West Paces Ferry Road, Atlanta, Georgia. The college scenes were shot at Agnes Scott College, College Avenue, Decatur, Georgia.

Meanwhile, many students from these schools also performed as extras in the film. In order to picture the home of Tuohys, two buildings from the Buckhead residential district of Atlanta were utilized.

Georgia is one of the renowned locations to shoot films. Due to its aesthetic appeal and modern architecture, it is deemed the best place for filming.

Apart from that, due to some similarities including the geography between Memphis and Atlanta, it was used as the shooting location.

Michael Oher on The Blind Side is an NFL player drafted in the first round of the 2009 draft. Oher became the Super Bowl XLVII champion in 2013.

When the film was released in theaters in 2009, he had not become a Super Bowl Champion. 4 years later in 2013, Michael and his team, the Baltimore Ravens emerged victorious in the league championship.

They won against the San Francisco 49ers. Oher served as an offensive tackle in the American Gridiron from 2009 to 2016. In the initial days, he served for the Baltimore Ravens.

In 2014, Big Mike became a part of the Tennessee Titans and finally joined the Carolina Panthers before retiring.

Similar to the film, the 37-year-old went to Ole Miss and graduated in 2008. Some of his achievements include Jacobs Blocking Trophy, Unanimous All-American, and First-team All-SEC.

During his 7-year-long career in the professional league, he played 110 games and started all of them. Today, Oher remains a notable left tackle in the history of football.

It is safe to say that The Blind Side film has further helped him expand his fandom. It is a heartwarming motion picture that has contributed to breaking the cultural barriers to some extent.

The journey of Michael from a homeless kid to a star football player is shown beautifully in the documentary. He had a tough childhood growing up because his mother suffered from substance abuse.

Talking about his father, Mr. Oher was absent from his son's life. Due to a lack of parental figures, finances, and love, his life was adrift.

Oher's life is the epitome of how grabbing any opportunity that comes along the way can change one's life.

At the end of the documentary, actual pictures of Michael, Leigh Anne Tuohy, Sean Tuohy, Sean Jr. (SJ), and Collins are shown.