"The Blind Side" give Sandra Bullock her 1st Oscar nomination

Warner Bros.’ new true-to-life drama “The Blind Side” is set to give Sandra Bullock a couple of career milestones: her biggest-grossing box-office hit (over $200-M and counting) and her first-ever potential Oscar nomination for Best Actress.

Bullock is already vying for the Best Actress honor in the Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards for her sterling portrayal of a rich and feisty Southern woman who takes a poor, black teenager under her wing, and nurtured his abilities both on and off the football field, resulting in an inspiring story that is still unfolding today.

Casting on the “The Blind Side” began with Bullock, who producer Andrew A. Kosove says was “the first and only choice for the role of Leigh Anne Tuohy.” Bullock read the screenplay and recalls, “It was a beautifully written script. It had all the right beats in all the right places. And I was amazed how [director] John Lee Hancock gave every one of the characters such a nice arc…each character has a distinct journey.”

Nevertheless, it took some convincing on the part of Hancock to get the actress to accept the role of the headstrong wife and mother. Hancock remembers, “Sandy liked the script but was having trouble figuring out how to portray Leigh Anne. We would meet and she would ask all kinds of questions, but I wasn’t able to come up with the answers she was looking for.”

“That was my biggest reservation,” Bullock affirms. “John would try to explain her to me, but he’d always fall short. I kept feeling something is missing.”

Hancock continues, “I think Sandy was understandably frustrated with my inability to describe the character, but that’s because Leigh Anne is indescribable. It’s one of the wonderful things about her. Finally I said, ‘Sandy, you just have to meet her.’ So we went down to Memphis and I introduced her to Leigh Anne. It turned into a full day spent with Leigh Anne and everything that involves: craziness and mayhem and fun and laughter and getting a lot of stuff done in very short order. At the end of the day, Sandy turned to me and said, ‘Okay I get it.’ She had experienced firsthand the tornado that is ‘Tuohy time,’ and we were off and running.”

“Once I saw the whole package, I realized why John couldn’t explain her,” the actress states. “How can you explain that kind of energy? By the end of one day with Leigh Anne, I was exhausted. She manages to do what she wants to do in the manner she wants to do it. She doesn’t care what it takes; she just gets it done her way. All I can say is, if there were more Leigh Anne Tuohys, the world would be a better-run, more harmonious and more productive place…as long as it was by her rules,” she laughs. “It was terrifying to think of playing her, but it was a challenge I couldn’t say no to. She’s such an amazing person.”

Opening soon across the Philippines, “The Blind Side” is distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment Company.