A film about the life of cold water guru Wim Hof aka the Iceman has been put on hold following “serious” accusations of domestic violence, production company Genesius Pictures has told the Volkskrant.

The paper published an article at the weekend in which the 65-year-old Hof’s former girlfriend said he had subjected her, their son and her two children from a former relationship to 13 years of mental and physical abuse.

The paper also cited police reports, court documents, a report from the child protection services and the testimony of another former partner.

Hof’s promotion of cold water training to boost health has made him a celebrity across the world, with millions following in his footsteps. In 2022, the annual report of Hof Holding showed a profit of €6 million.

Strangulation

In 2012 he was fined and given a community service order for abusing his stepson who claimed to be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder. His ex-partner accused Hof of sexual abuse and strangulation and said the abuse continued during her pregnancy.

In a response, Hof denied the allegations. “It’s clear she is on the warpath and trying to present a different version of what happened,” he said.

Hof told show programme RTL Boulevard he was “not a violent man”. He and his partner had “their differences” he admitted but the domestic abuse accusations were based on “jealousy, bitterness and envy,” Hof said.

London-based Genesius Pictures, which has since removed the announcement of The Iceman from its website, said the allegations were serious enough to reconsider production of the film, in which Hof was to be played by Ralph Fiennes.

According to a description on the website of partner Cornerstone Pictures, the film was to portray Hof as “a widower who worked as a postman and struggled to support his four children” in an “inspiring and moving true story”.

Earlier this year Hof was cleared of causing the death of a 17-year-old American teenager who was found at the bottom of a pool by her father, who claimed she had been practising breathing exercises promoted by Hof.