The story of Natalia Grace is one that makes your stomach churn and your mind race as if the truth itself is trying to escape from a tangled web of lies. Imagine being a child—adopted, vulnerable, with a rare form of dwarfism—and suddenly finding yourself in a nightmare.
Good American Family, the Hulu series, draws inspiration from this heartbreaking tale, where a young girl’s life is turned upside down by a family that, despite their best intentions, ends up questioning her very identity.
Katie Robbins’ show follows the Barnett family, who adopted Grace and soon began to suspect she wasn’t the innocent child they thought. The truth behind this real-life story is just as unsettling as any fictional horror thriller. But how much of the tale we’re seeing is the full picture? Let’s dig deeper.
Good American Family: The untold story of Natalia Grace’s early life
Good American Family is like that one mystery novel that you just can’t put down, even though you’re not sure who the villain is. The trailer promises a show inspired by “multiple stories, perspectives, threats, interpretations, and accusations,” and honestly, it feels like trying to untangle a ball of yarn with a blindfold on.
The cast brings this real-life drama to life, with Ellen Pompeo stepping into Kristine Barnett’s shoes and Imogen Faith Reid portraying Natalia Grace.
But the actual story behind Grace’s time with the Barnetts is a complete web of conflicting stories, half-truths, and downright bizarre claims.
Born in Ukraine, she came into the world with spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita, a rare form of dwarfism that makes her life journey even more complicated (via The Independent). According to her Ukrainian birth certificate, she was born in 2003, which would make her about seven years old when the Barnetts took her in back in 2010.
The Barnetts’ claims: Natalia Grace’s violent behavior and alleged age deception
After the Barnetts welcomed Natalia Grace into their home, things quickly spiraled into chaos. Right from the get-go, the Barnetts and some other sources claimed that Grace displayed behaviors that raised red flags. She was reportedly diagnosed with reactive attachment disorder, a mental health condition that can result in violent tendencies and difficulty forming bonds (via People).
According to The Independent’s report, things got pretty intense—there were allegations that Grace threatened her adoptive family with knives, acted out in disturbing ways, and even tried to poison Kristine Barnett.
The Barnetts, in turn, claimed a professional diagnosis branded Grace a “sociopath,” although the latter flat-out denied these accusations. But it wasn’t just the behavior that had the Barnetts suspicious. The family began wondering if Grace might be hiding a bigger secret than just some erratic behavior.
They began to question her age, suggesting that she was much older than the birth certificate indicated. Kristine Barnett famously pointed out that she seemed to have already developed “full pubic hair” and had started menstruating—signs that most girls typically experience closer to 12 (via The Guardian).
There were also claims that Grace’s vocabulary was way too advanced for a child her supposed age, and she appeared physically older than other children with the same form of dwarfism. All of this led the Barnetts to believe that maybe Grace wasn’t a child at all, but rather an adult or teenager who was using her dwarfism as a ruse to scam them.
How the Barnetts changed Natalia Grace’s birth year and left her to live alone
Now, things took an even more dramatic turn when, just two years after adopting Natalia Grace, the Barnetts pushed for a change to her official birth year. Yes, after the Barnetts petitioned the court, a judge agreed to alter Grace’s birth year from 2003 to 1989 (via USA Today).
This shift in her birth records had a major impact. Suddenly, she was legally considered an adult, and her adoptive parents no longer had legal custody. That meant they could, in their eyes, treat her like a grownup. In fact, they went so far as to rent an apartment for her in Lafayette, Indiana, put her on federal benefits, and then packed up their bags and moved to Canada (via The Independent).
So, essentially, they dropped Grace off on her own.
But here’s where the story gets even messier. Despite being declared an adult, Grace claimed she wasn’t fully capable of taking care of herself. According to Business Insider, she said she struggled with basic tasks like bathing and using the washing machine. It sounded like she was stuck between childhood and adulthood, unable to thrive in either world.
In 2019, the legal fallout from the Barnetts’ decision started to heat up. Tippecanoe County prosecutors charged Kristine and Michael Barnett with neglect of a dependent, citing that they abandoned a vulnerable person in need. Michael Barnett was acquitted in October 2022, but Kristine Barnett’s charges were dismissed in March 2023.
The current lives of Natalia Grace and the Barnett family: Where are they now?
Fast forward a decade and a half since the adoption saga, and the lives of Kristine, Michael Barnett, and Natalia Grace have all taken significantly different turns. We learned from Business Insider that Michael and Kristine Barnett parted ways in 2013 and officially divorced in 2014.
But if you think that Grace’s life became a fairytale after leaving the Barnetts, think again. The struggles kept on coming. She was adopted once again, this time by the Mans family, but things didn’t improve (via People). In fact, things allegedly got worse, with reports claiming that she endured abuse for a decade. So much so that Grace had to stage an “escape” to get out of the situation.
Fortunately, things have started looking up since then. She now lives with the DePaul family, and they seem to be offering her the stability and care she needs.
These days, Grace is focused on her future. She’s studying for her General Educational Development (GED) tests with plans to become a teacher. On top of that, she even has a boyfriend by her side. She told People:
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. I love it.
Good American Family is an uneven ride, to say the least, leaving viewers questioning whether they’ve seen the truth—or just a dramatized version of it.
And to those of you who think your past defines you, take a page out of Natalia Grace’s book. It’s not the past that matters, it’s the strength to move forward that counts. Here’s hoping the rest of her journey is filled with happiness, stability, and, most importantly, peace!
You can stream Good American Family only on Hulu.
This post belongs to FandomWire and first appeared on FandomWire
