From The Washington Post:
The Blind Side is based on the true story of the then-homeless black teenager Michael Oher and the Tuohys, the wealthy, white evangelical Tennessee family who adopted him. As football fans know, during his time with the Tuohys, Oher developed not only into a confident young man but also into a football sensation.
Heavily recruited to play in college, Oher attended Ole Miss and currently plays offensive tackle for the Baltimore Ravens.
Oher’s adoptive mom Leigh Anne Tuohy, with her expensive car, dolled-up appearance and don’t-mess-with-me attitude may seem more southern belle than follower of Christ, but Sandra Bullock thinks Tuohy is the real deal. In an interview with Vancouver’s Straight.com, Bullock revealed that at first she was reluctant to play the Christian woman.
“People use it [Christianity] as a banner, and then they don’t do the right thing,” she said in the interview. “I said to Leigh Anne when I met her, ‘One of my biggest concerns stepping into this is this whole banner thing,'” Bullock recounted. “I told her it scared me because I have had a lot of experiences that haven’t been that great. But she was so honest and forthright. I feel I have finally met someone who practices but doesn’t preach. I now have faith in those who say they represent a faith.”