10 Based On True Story Movies That Never Happened

2009's sports drama The Blind Side was a massive box office hit and scooped Sandra Bullock a Best Actress Oscar for her turn as Leigh Anne Tuohy, a wealthy white woman who adopts impoverished Black youngster Michael Oher (Quinton Aaron), who later becomes an offensive tackle in the NFL.

There's obviously no disputing that Michael Oher is a human being who exists, who played American football, and who was adopted by the Tuohys, but beyond that the emotional bulk of The Blind Side is a sentimental confection designed to make white people cry while patting themselves on the back.

Oher himself has spoken out extensively about the film over the years, confirming just how much of it was embellished.

For starters, the Tuohys' adoption of Oher was far more gradual and less-dramatic in real life, and while the film suggests that Oher was effectively clueless about football until Leigh Anne taught him the basics, he contends the truth couldn't be more different.

In his book "I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness, to the Blind Side, and Beyond," he says:

"I could not figure out why the director chose to show me as someone who had to be taught the game of football. Whether it was S.J. moving around ketchup bottles or Leigh Anne explaining to me what blocking is about, I watched those scenes thinking, 'No, that's not me at all! I've been studying - really studying - the game since I was a kid!' That was my main hang-up with the film."

Oher has also contended that his false characterisation in the film affected his reputation on the football field, building him up to a near-mythic level that he simply couldn't reach in reality.