“Ellen Pompeo's acting is ruining this”- Fans not satisfied with Good American Family’s depiction of the Natalia Grace case 

The Hulu miniseries Good American Family has stirred strong reactions from viewers after its premiere, with many criticizing Ellen Pompeo’s performance and the way the real-life Natalia Grace case has been dramatized.

The show follows Kristine and Michael Barnett, a couple who adopt a Ukrainian girl with a rare form of dwarfism, only to later suspect she’s an adult. While Good American Family promises to offer multiple perspectives, many viewers feel the depiction is one-sided, emotionally flat, and even harmful.

Here’s how Reddit responded to the series:

Comment byu/NicholasCajun from discussion intelevision

“Sorry but Ellen Pompeo's acting is ruining this. I can't unsee her as Meredith on Gray's and she brings no dynamics here to a situation that was very complicated and painful," one viewer pointed out.

One Reddit user highlighted how Pompeo’s familiar TV persona distracts from the role’s emotional weight.

“This show is a perfect example of how television can take someone’s story and change the truth to a complete fabricated lie ! I feel so bad for Natalia," one commenter wrote.

“I love Ellen and Mark Duplass, and you can see how they elevate this thing a little. But they cant save it. I really wanted Ellen's first new thing in 20 years to be great. Hope she gets another shot," another Redditor added.

One viewer admitted they were rooting for the show purely because of Ellen Pompeo and Mark Duplass but felt that even their performances couldn’t rescue what they saw as a deeply flawed series.

“I loved Ellen Pompeo in most of Grey's so I was excited to see her take on a different role but it's just...disappointing so far," a Reddited user wrote.

“This show is effing terrible. I don't understand why my mom and my sister like this show," another Redditor commented.

Another viewer didn’t hold back, bluntly calling the show “effing terrible” and expressing confusion over why their family enjoyed it.

“This was so bad, the acting, the distortion of facts, and the actress who portrayed Natalia, I'm guessing a lot of makeup was involved to make her look more creepy...idk, I had to stop watching 15 minutes into the 1st episode," one critic wrote.

calling out the performance choices and the unsettling portrayal of Natalia.

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What is Good American Family all about?

Good American Family is a Hulu limited series based on the real-life case of Natalia Grace, a Ukrainian girl with dwarfism adopted by Americans Kristine and Michael Barnett in 2010. The eight-episode drama presents the conflicting narratives of a family who came to believe their adopted daughter was not a child, but an adult posing as one.

The Barnetts petitioned the court to legally change Natalia’s birth year from 2003 to 1989 and eventually left her alone in an Indiana apartment. A 2023 DNA test later indicated that Natalia was born in 2003, suggesting she was only around eight or nine years old at the time of her abandonment.

In Good American Family, Ellen Pompeo plays Kristine Barnett, while Mark Duplass portrays her husband Michael. Imogen Faith Reid plays Natalia, shifting between innocence and suspicion as the narrative progresses.

The series shows how red flags -unpaid medical bills, a shady adoption agency, and unusual behaviour led the Barnetts to feel threatened, ultimately setting off a legal and media firestorm.

The story has previously been covered in the docuseries The Curious Case of Natalia Grace, but Good American Family dramatizes those events for a broader audience, using shifting timelines to complicate viewers’ understanding of guilt, trust, and truth.

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