Is It Based on a True Story?
The Hulu series is “inspired” by a true story. Real-life couple Kristine and Michael Barnett experienced something similar when adopting Natalia, a Ukrainian girl they believed to be a 7-year-old with dwarfism. She was later accused by the Barnetts of being a 21-year-old con artist. The parents allege that she threatened to kill them and their biological sons.
After legally changing Natalia’s birth year from 2003 to 1989 on official records, the Barnetts moved Natalia into an apartment in a new city and moved their family to Canada in 2013. They were charged with neglect of a dependent in 2019, but the case is ongoing. Although her age change — which Natalia claims is inaccurate — is legal, her dwarfism still makes her dependent on her adoptive parents.
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