Ukrainian adoptee Natalia Grace sues Disney over portrayal in Hulu series

Ukrainian-born Natalia Grace, who has dwarfism, has filed a lawsuit against Disney and Hulu, claiming the 2025 drama Good American Family misrepresented her life and caused emotional harm.

Natalia Grace, the Ukrainian woman at the centre of a widely publicised adoption controversy, is pursuing legal action against Disney and Hulu for defamation and intentional emotional distress.

The lawsuit follows the release of Good American Family, a Hulu limited series that dramatized Grace’s early life with her adoptive parents, starring Ellen Pompeo as Kristine Barnett.

Natalia Grace, now 24, alleges that the show falsely painted her as deceptive, dangerous, and manipulative, suggesting she was not truly a child at the time of her adoption and implicated her in acts of abuse.

She argues that the series blurred fact and fiction, leaving viewers unclear on which events were real. Despite the show disclaiming some fictionalization, Grace says it does not absolve the network of responsibility.

The series explored two perspectives: the first episodes showed the Barnetts’ view of a supposed 22-year-old posing as a child, while the latter half presented Natalia as a victim of neglect and mistreatment.

Natalia Grace’s story is highly complex; after being adopted in 2010, she faced legal challenges from her adoptive parents who claimed she misrepresented her age. Natalia denies all accusations, and the couple was later acquitted of neglect charges.

Currently representing herself, Natalia is seeking unspecified damages. She claims the network deliberately framed her life around controversy while downplaying her experiences of childhood abuse.

Outside the series, Natalia Grace has shown resilience. Her latest adoptive parents, Bishop Antwon and Cynthia Mans, supported her until June 2023.

In early 2024, she shared on social media that she had moved out, is saving for her own home, and plans to start a photography business.

She is also preparing for costly spinal surgery due to Diastrophic Dysplasia, a form of dwarfism that can result in severe complications if untreated.

Through the lawsuit, Natalia Grace seeks both recognition of the truth of her experiences and accountability from Disney and Hulu for what she perceives as a harmful and misleading portrayal of her life.