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As new details about the Natalia Grace drama series Good American Family emerge, the Hulu show has received an endorsement from Kristine Barnett, sparking backlash from followers of the case.
For the uninitiated, the stranger-than-fiction case rose to infamy after Investigation Discovery’s true crime docu-series The Curious Case of Natalia Grace dropped last year.
The first season centers on the two conflicting accounts of the eponymous orphan and her former adoptive parents, Michael and Kristine Barnett. The Barnetts claim Natalia masqueraded as a six-year-old Ukrainian girl with the intent of harming their family.
IDNatalia shared her side of the story in Natalia Speaks
However, Natalia’s version of events shows there’s more to this story than meets the eye. The Barnetts seemingly abandoned a child with a disability, forcing her to live in an inaccessible apartment alone.
New details were revealed in the second season, Natalia Speaks, including extensive DNA testing proving Natalia was, in fact, a child when the Barnetts adopted her in 2010.
Following a fallout with her new adoptive parents, Cynthia and Antwon Mans, there were talks of a third season. However, it looks like we’ll be getting a dramatization first.
As was announced in Disney Plus and Hulu’s 2025 slate, Good American Family is an upcoming limited series set to tell the story. Ellen Pompeo and Mark Duplass are playing Kristine and Michael Barnett, while Imogen Faith Reid takes on the role of Natalia.
Little is known about how the case will be portrayed, but Kristine herself appears to be anticipating its release, sparking backlash due to the allegations of abuse and neglect against her.
Taking to Facebook, Kristine shared an article about Good American Family, writing, “Here’s to high hopes that the truth is finally told about my family as Disney releases the Good American Family starring Ellen Pompeo.”
Her post was shared on the Natalia Grace subreddit, alongside the caption, “Kristine is at it again. I hesitated sharing as she seems to be looking for attention and bragging about Ellen Pompeo playing her.
“Yes Kristine, we all hope the truth is told, the actual truth. Not the dramatic version you and Michael created.”
“It must be worse than I thought if that child abuser endorses it,” said another, while a third added, “I can’t believe Disney (Hulu) signed up to spread her lies about Natalia. It is so obvious now that Natalia is an adult that she was just a child back then.”
A fourth commented, “If they don’t make the Barnett parents the awful people they really were in life like that in the show I’m gonna be sick because this is so gross making this show after everything Natalia went through.
“And she still has not got any justice in her life and it’s all so sad, she had no say or choice in any of the matters that happened to her.”
One person pointed out that the direction of the series hasn’t been revealed yet. “Well, Hulu did a decent job showing what a full nut Sherri Pappini is, maybe they’ll do Kristine justice,” they wrote.
After the release of Natalia Speaks at the start of the year, Kristine shared a separate post denying the allegations of abuse.
“She was not abused by anyone in my family,” she wrote. “Let’s get straight to these allegations. Nobody ever took a belt to Natalia and the allegations that she was ‘beaten’ are just plain false.”
Although Kristine faced trial on multiple counts of neglect of a dependent, the charges against her were dropped in March 2023 due to insufficient evidence.
There is no official release date for Good American Family, but we’ll keep you posted when new details emerge. Until then, find out how to watch the Natalia Grace documentaries, what Freddie Gill said about the Barnetts, and a breakdown of the Natalia Speaks ending.
English (US) ·