Wim Hof was a central part of the BBC show Freeze the Fear. Photo / BBC
Wim Hof was a central part of the BBC show Freeze the Fear. Photo / BBC
Production of a British film about the life of “Iceman” Wim Hof has been temporarily halted after accusations of domestic violence were made against the wellness guru.
The biopic was stopped after the Volkskrant newspaper reported Hof physically and verbally abused a former partner, their son and her two children from a previous marriage for about 13 years.
A spokesman for the London-based company told the Telegraph: “Genesius Pictures can confirm that due to the severity of the allegations, this production, which was in development only and had not begun filming, is on hold.”
The production company had said The Iceman, which was set to star Joseph Fiennes as the Dutch motivational speaker and extreme athlete, would be an “inspiring”, “moving” and “at times extremely funny” film. Promotional materials for the project were taken down from its website on Monday.
Caroline, Hof’s former partner, contacted Volkskrant and spoke out about how she and her family had to endure his abusive behaviour as his fame grew. Hof denies the allegations.
His Wim Hof method, famous for its use of cold showers and breathing exercises, has made him famous and brought him into contact with stars such as Oprah Winfrey and Jim Carrey.
In 2022, his cold exposure training of a group of celebrities was a central part of the BBC show Freeze the Fear with Wim Hof, hosted by Holly Willoughby and Lee Mack.
Caroline, whose last name is not given in the Volkskrant article, was in a relationship with Hof for 10 years, but she and her family have not seen him for 11 years. They had a son, Noah, who is now 21 and is not in contact with his father.
They and her two other children from a previous marriage, Christiaan and Nathalie, were horrified at the prospect of a film celebrating a man she says left them traumatised.
“For them the name Wim Hof is synonymous with years of aggression, physical violence, humiliation, manipulation and — in Caroline’s case — also sexual abuse,” Volkskrant reported.
“They know the Iceman, as Hof calls himself, as a mean drunk with an explosive character and delusions of grandeur. Someone of whom they had to be permanently wary.”
Hof told the newspaper: “It is obvious that she’s on the warpath and now wants to make everything look different from how it was.
Wim Hof is known for his use of cold showers and breathing exercises.
“Caroline always knew how to quickly get under my skin,” he said while answering a list of 44 questions from the newspaper. “Because of her, I started drinking, yes”.
He insisted he had never been violent.
Volkskrant said it had corroborated the story with court rulings, a report from the Child Protection Board, medical reports, emails and other evidence.
Community service
It reported Hof was fined €350 ($613) and sentenced to 40 hours of community service in 2012 for assaulting Christiaan, Caroline’s oldest son.
A temporary restraining order to keep him away from the family was imposed.
The explanation for the order said Hof “used physical violence” against Caroline, Christiaan and Noah, and had “made death threats”.
In 2015, the Dutch Child Welfare Council decided Hof had forfeited the right of parental access to Noah because he had committed so much psychological violence against the boy.
Caroline said Hof attacked her for the first time in 2002, when she was a few months pregnant with Noah.
“He slapped my face,” she told the newspaper. “Then he dragged me through the room by my hair and tried to kick me in the belly. I was just about able to hide behind the couch, so his kick only grazed me. Then he left.”
“He grabbed me by the throat, cutting off my breath. I was very close to dying. Eventually, he let go, probably because Noah was around,” she said of another incident in 2006.
Nathalie said he threw hot coffee in her face and often called her a pig.
‘Mrs Diabetes’
“He often called us ‘mediocre people’,” Caroline told Volkskrant, “And when I developed diabetes, he said: ‘You deserve this. You are Mrs Diabetes and I am the Iceman.’”
In 2010, matters came to a head after Caroline told Hof to leave the home they shared.
On May 8, after drinking all day, Hof was arrested by police after threatening to break a plate over Caroline’s head, pushing Noah and attacking Christiaan.
The restraining order was imposed after this incident. Hof had fortnightly access to Noah until 2015, when that was removed.
In its report removing parental access, the Child Protection Board said Hof would coerce Caroline to have sex with him “either by threatening to take Noah away from her, but also for money”.
Caroline told Volkskrant Hof would pay alimony only if she had sex with him.
“Only later, in therapy, I started to realise that what he was doing was actually rape,” she told the newspaper.
Volkskrant said that also sent numerous emails in which he called Caroline and the children “dirty bastards” and “monstrous a**holes”, and described himself as someone who “may win the Nobel prize”.
