 "Natalia Grace: The story of orphan abandoned for being ‘adult’, who inspired Hulu show ‘Good American Family’")
Do any of you remember the famous Hollywood movie Orphan? The 2009 movie is about a family that adopts a little girl, who appears to be very innocent. However, when a series of dangerous events unfold in their household, the mother suspects that there is evil lurking behind the girl’s angelic exterior.
That’s exactly what streaming platform Hulu depicts in its new showstopper Good American Family — albeit this time, the show is based on true events.
Good American Family, starring Ellen Pompeo, Mark Duplass and Imogen Faith Reid, dramatises the real-life story of Natalia Grace, the Ukraine-born adoptee, whose second set of adoptive parents in the US claimed that she was not a little girl but an adult “sociopath”.
As the show continues to get rave reviews and ratings online and sparking interest in the 2014 real-life matter, we deep dive into the complicated true story of Natalia Grace behind it and why this may not be the last time we hear her name.
The complicated life of Natalia Grace
The real-life Natalia Grace, played in the Hulu serial by Imogen Faith Reid, came to the United States from Ukraine in 2008 when she was adopted by a New Hampshire couple. Scant details of her early life were provided — it is known that Natalia’s birth mother had been born in Latvia and was living in Ukraine at the time of Natalia’s birth, which was listed on Natalia’s birth certificate as September 4, 2003 and she placed Natalia in an orphanage.
In 2008, she was adopted by a New Hampshire couple identified as Dyan and Gary Ciccone. However, they gave up their parental rights to Natalia in 2010. Following this, Natalia, who has a rare dwarfism condition known as spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita, was adopted by Indiana couple Kristine and Michael Barnett, who have three biological children.
But very soon into the adoption, the Barnetts ran into problems with Natalia. They became suspicious of her actual age — her paperwork at the time revealed she was six — and alleged that Natalia showed signs of puberty, including menstruation and pubic hair.
Months into the adoption, the Barnetts claimed that Natalia began to demonstrate threatening behaviour towards them and their three biological sons.
Kristine Barnett has alleged that Natalia threatened to stab the family in their sleep, pushed her towards an electric fence, and poured bleach into her coffee. And when she asked Natalia what she was doing, Natalia would respond, “I am trying to poison you.”
Following this, the Barnetts, in 2012, successfully got Natalia’s legal age changed to 22 from eight after receiving a nod from the court. They then moved her out of the family home and into her own apartment, owing to which Michael Barnett was charged with child neglect — he was acquitted of these charges in 2022.
Natalia’s encounter with the Mans
After being moved out of the Barnett’s home, Natalia came into contact with Antwon and Cynthia Mans, a religious couple. In 2016, the Mans petitioned to be her legal guardian and in 2023 that came true.
Six months after the adoption, the couple expressed concerns about Grace in a recorded call to the producers of The Curious Case of Natalia Grace — another show that was made on her circumstances.
“Something ain’t right with Natalia,” Antwon Mans said in the call, which was included in the docuseries. “This girl is tweakin.’ I feel like she’s the enemy in the house … Made us look like we’re the enemy.”
“Natalia does not have emotions for nothing but herself,” Antwon Mans also said on the call, as seen in the series. “We’re done. We’re done with her.”
Grace eventually left the Manses’ home, alleging that they had been physically and emotionally abusive towards her. According to People magazine, the alleged abuse included whipping her with a belt, slapping her in the face, locking her in a room, and other forms of assault.
She now lives with Nicole and Vincent DePaul, a New York couple with dwarfism.
Natalia’s age row unravels
A lot of the drama surrounding Natalia came from her age or as Barnetts described her efforts to hide her true age.
But the mystery around her age was cleared up in 2023. A blood test conducted by the medical lab TruDiagnostic determined that Natalia was approximately 22 years old at the time of testing. This means that she was likely around nine years old when the Barnetts adopted her in 2010.
What this meant is that she was much younger than 34, which is what her changed birth certificate claimed. The test revealed that she was just four when she came to the United States from Ukraine and only eight years old when the Barnetts legally changed her age, and moved to Canada, leaving her behind in the apartment alone.
“This one little piece of paper throws every single lie that the Barnetts has said right into the trash with a match,” Natalia said in the premiere episode of Natalia Speaks, a docuseries that was released in 2024. “This is so big. Because literally, this has been 13 years of just two people lying their butts off. They ruined a kid’s life. They painted [me] as some big monster.”
Following this revelation, Natalia’s birth year was legally changed back to 2003, owing to which her age is now listed as 21 in 2025.
On the occasion of her 21st birthday in January, she even told People magazine, “I feel like I was brainwashed by the Barnetts. Kristine coached me to lie about my age and say I tried to murder my parents. Why would you do that to your child?”
She also revealed that she was preparing to live independently and that she’s grown from her experience. “It’s been a big learning curve for me. For the most part, I’ve made peace. It is definitely a blessing to be alive today,” she told the US magazine. “There’s nothing I can do to change the past.”
With inputs from agencies
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