Three Cups of Tea VS The Blind Side
Verdict DROP IT DROP IT
The Reality In April 2011, '60 Minutes' and author Jon Krakauer published parallel investigations finding significant fabrications in the book's central story. A companion from Mortenson's actual 1993 K2 attempt disputed that villagers in Korphe nursed him back to health, and two porters who accompanied him told '60 Minutes' Mortenson did not stumble into Korphe lost and alone -- he didn't visit Korphe at all until nearly a year later, on a separate trip. A photo used to support a claimed Taliban kidnapping in Mortenson's second book was also found to be staged, showing people who were not Taliban. The investigations further alleged Mortenson used his charity's funds to enrich himself and promote his books without sharing proceeds, prompting an investigation by the Montana attorney general's office. In August 2023, Oher filed a petition in a Tennessee probate court alleging the Tuohys never actually adopted him -- what he signed in 2004, at age 18, was a conservatorship agreement giving them legal control over his finances and affairs, not an adoption. Oher said he only discovered this in February 2023, nearly two decades later. He sought to end the conservatorship, block further use of his name and likeness, and obtain a full accounting of money earned from his story, name, and likeness over 19 years. The Tuohy family called the claims a 'shakedown' attempt and said film proceeds were split evenly among the family, Oher included, at $100,000 per person. A Tennessee judge terminated the conservatorship in September 2023, though other issues in the case, including disputed payments, remained outstanding.
SHORT ANSWER
Three Cups of Tea: 60 Minutes and journalist Jon Krakauer both independently found Mortenson's central Korphe rescue story was fabricated -- he didn't actually visit the village until nearly a year after the claimed events -- and a photo supporting a separate Taliban-kidnapping claim was staged.
The Blind Side: Michael Oher's 2023 court filing alleges the Tuohy family never legally adopted him as the book and film depict -- he says he unknowingly signed a conservatorship agreement in 2004 -- and a Tennessee judge terminated that conservatorship the following month.