Why Natalia Grace Finally Cut Off Adoptive Family for Good -- And Where She Is Now

Natalia initially made headlines when her first adoptive parents, Michael and Kristine Barnett, had her age legally changed to make her an adult -- two years after they were told she was a 6-year-old girl. Claiming Natalia tried to kill them and their other children, the Barnetts then placed her in an apartment alone; the two were later arrested for neglect, but cleared of the charges, while a 2023 DNA test later determined Grace was actually a child at the time she was abandoned.

While ID's The Curious Case of Natalia Grace in 2023 ended with Grace settling in with a new family, Antwon and Cynthia Mans, things there apparently went downhill six months after they formally adopted her -- so much so that, as seen on 2025's The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: The Final Chapter, Natalia fled their home without warning and moved in with Vince and Nicole DePaul, another family with a form of dwarfism who attempted to adopt Natalia before the Barnetts.

TooFab has screened the episodes ahead of the January 6 and 7 debut.

Natalia's connection to the Manses remained tight after leaving their home, with the DePaul's accusing the couple of manipulating, blackmailing and brainwashing Natalia even from afar. While staying with the DePauls, Natalia stayed in contact with them and even got upset with Nicole when she suggested going to therapy to work through some of her past trauma.

"I have felt a lot of rage towards Nicole. There were some instances that I felt like Nicole is going over a line when it came to me and my parents. I did get upset because you don't really know my parents that well, like I do," Natalia confessed in the final installment of the new docuseries. "Nic and Vince, they go tough love on me, like, 'You need to get into therapy.' But I don't like putting my stuff on people. I know that's their job, but I don't like depending on people, I don't like burdening them with my problems."

She went on to explain that she does suffer from Reactive Attachment Disorder and has a fear of abandonment -- which leaves her feeling as though anyone close to her could just walk out on her at any moment. "I personally can't handle someone leaving me anymore. I can't handle caring about somebody and then they walk away," she added.

The cracks between Natalia's relationship with the Manses really started to show when they started talking money. According to Natalia, they claimed they would pay her taxes, with Nicole calling Cynthia to ask her about Natalia's 10-99.

"We told her we would go in on it because it was our money. But we never said we'd pay the whole thing," Cynthia said over the phone. "That devil's a liar. We're not paying that whole thing. Yeah, no."

"You think she should pay for it even though she doesn't have any of that money? Of the $104,000 you guys received?" Nicole asked Cynthia, before asking Natalia to stop "covering for" her adoptive mother -- or she'd be stuck paying a tax bill for money she allegedly never received herself. As previously revealed, Cynthia Mans was Natalia's social security payee -- and Natalia allegedly had no access to the money, which some have accused the Manses of using for their own home.

A couple days after that phone call, Natalia called Cynthia back, allegedly demanding they help her pay her taxes. After the call, she stormed into the kitchen, exclaiming, "I'm so pissed right now. I'm so f--king pissed right now" because they wouldn't even help her pay.

Natalia then claimed Cynthia told her, "Maybe this is God's way of saying you can move to the UK" -- before saying she was considering taking legal action.

"I'm done trying to trust people enough to see if they will actually do right. She will never know my kids. She will not know anything that goes on in my life. She won't even know I had my surgery, whenever I get it," Natalia exclaimed. "I'm done. I'm done, I told her that and she was like, 'Have a nice life.' And I was like, 'You too' and I hung up."

As she started to distance herself from her adoptive parents, she started coming around to the idea of having surgery to help with the back pain she'd been experiencing for years. Noting how similar surgery seemed to help the DePauls, who also have a form of dwarfism, she said she was "still terrified" of it, but "staring to be a little more open" to going under the knife.

After revealing she's "not really talking to my parents" anymore, she then reached an even bigger life milestone -- her first time on an airplane!

Natalia decided to take a trip to the UK to visit her online boyfriend, Neil -- and, while in the process of getting her passport and naturalization papers, was able to have have her birthdate on them changed back to 2003.

She then went to England, saying she's a "much happier person" after her trip and spending time with Neil, who "legit cares" about her. She's since developed a love of traveling and seeing new things.

Her relationship with the DePauls grew stronger, with her once again feeling close with their daughter Mackenzie -- while Nicole and Vince's marriage rebounded from the stress Natalia's earlier days with them caused on their relationship.

"There is still some good in the world. It's rare to find the right people ... the right place ... coming here was my choice," she said of her decision to live with the Manses. "I'm thankful and ready for the old chapter of my life to be closed and a new one start."

"I'm trying to take control of my life and stop letting other people control it. I feel like I'm becoming this new person, this new version of myself that feels amazing and feels free," she said toward the end of the series. "It's time to rewrite my story. I opened my wings and I soared."

The Curious Case of Natalia Grace: The Final Chapter airs in four parts -- with two episodes of Monday, January 6 and Tuesday, January 7 on ID and streaming on Max.