After the release of any true story dramatisation, whether it's on TV or the big screen, most people are pushed to further deep-dive into the facts. Such is the case with upcoming Hulu crime series Good American Family, allegedly depicting the adoption of orphan Natalia Grace. Ahead of it airing next month, curious TV viewers have been researching the case in its unbelievable entirety, with many keen to know more about the girl who is said to have inspired the limited eight-part series.
Who is Natalia Grace?
Natalia Grace is a Ukrainian-born American, famed for her unorthodox adoption in 2010. After being placed in a Ukrainian orphanage after birth, she was diagnosed with spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita - a 'rare genetic disorder that causes dwarfism and skeletal abnormalities'.
In the spring of 2010, aged six and then based in the US as an adoptee, Natalia was adopted by Indiana couple Kristine Elizabeth Barnett and Michael Barnett, who were already parents to three sons.
However, shortly after Natalia's adoption, Kristine and Michael began to have doubts that she was in fact a child born in 2003, as her behaviour and physicalities seemed to suggest otherwise.
Kristine claimed, 'I was giving [Natalia] a bath and I noticed that she had full pubic hair. I was so shocked. I had just been told she was a six year old and it was very apparent she wasn't. She had periods and adult teeth.'
She doubled down, 'Natalia was a woman. She had periods. She had adult teeth. She never grew a single inch, which would happen even with a child with dwarfism.'
Natalia was also accused of threatening to stab the family in their sleep, poisoning Kristine's coffee, and trying to push her onto an electric fence. Natalia denied all the violence claims made against her, as well as having her period while living under Kristine and Michael's roof.
In 2012, the Barnetts successfully petitioned the Marion County court to alter Natalia's birth records to indicate that she was born in 1989 and aged 22, instead of 11, the age she was previously believed to be. A year later, Kristine and Michael relocated to Canada with their biological children while Natalia was left on her own in a rental Lafayette, Indiana apartment. Soon after, she was taken in by Antwon and Cynthia Mans, after they allegedly noticed her struggling to live on her own.
The Barnetts - who are now divorced - were charged with neglect in relation to Natalia's abandonment. Michael was eventually acquitted, and the case against Kristine was dropped.
However, the prosecutors in the neglect case were able to locate Natalia's birth mother Anna Volodymyrivna Gava, and DNA testing showed that had Natalia's proposed 1989 birth year been correct, Anna would have given birth to her at 10 years old. Not only this, but Ukrainian birth and hospital records supported Natalia's original date of birth, 3 September 2003. But as the prosecutors were barred from presenting evidence that Natalia was a minor child when she was living alone, the neglect case was tried based on Natalia's disability, not her age. Having said that, Natalia's date of birth has since been legally restored to 2003.
Is Good American Family a true story?
Good American Family, starring Ellen Pompeo, Mark Duplass and Imogen Faith Reid, is touted as a 'limited true crime drama series based on the adoption of Natalia Grace'.
The synopsis in full reads: 'This compelling drama is inspired by the disturbing stories surrounding a Midwestern couple who adopts a girl with a rare form of dwarfism. But as they begin to raise her alongside their three biological children, mystery emerges around her age and background, and they slowly start to suspect she may not be who she says she is.'
Good American Family comes on the heels of documentary series, The Curious Case Of Natalia Grace.
Where is Natalia Grace today?
Natalia Grace now resides with Nicole and Vince DePaul - who had tried to adopt her previously - along with their daughter Mackenzie, in New York. The living arrangement came about in 2023 when Natalia's boyfriend Neil contacted Nicole and asked her to help Natalia leave Antwon and Cynthia Mans.
Natalia - who dreams of being a school teacher one day - told the outlet, 'It's a blessing to be alive today because looking back at my 7-year-old self, I should have been dead. Learning everything that I have about how to live with my dwarfism - it's been a great experience.' She added that she 'feels free' living with the DePauls.
Millie Payne is a News and Entertainment Writer for Grazia. She has specialised in showbiz interviews, features, articles and roundups for over three years and loves combining her love for writing, talking and all things popular culture.