Netflix's The Man With 1000 Kids tells the story of a shocking sperm donor scandal that resulted in one serial donor fathering hundreds of children across Europe - but who is Jonathan Meijer and where is he now?
New Netflix docu-series, The Man With 1000 Kids, follows the tale of Jonathan Meijer, who is believed to have donated sperm on a mass, unregulated scale and ultimately fathered hundreds of children.
A synopsis for the shocking new doc describes it as a three-part series investigating "the murky world of the fertility industry and uncovers how due to a lack of global regulations, some international fertility clinics continue to allow anonymous donations.
"With exclusive access to a group of passionate and aggrieved parents, this series unravels the twisting and turning story of this YouTuber who defrauded parents from all around the world, and how they are now on a mission to push for a change in the law to prevent him deceiving more."
But who exactly is Jonathan Meijer and where is he now?
Who is Jonathan Meijer?
Jonathan Jacob Meijer is a Dutch musician turned sperm donor, who is accused of duping hundreds of women into having his children.
While it’s unclear how many people were affected by his deception, it’s thought that Meijer has fathered over 600 children across Europe in his bid to donate sperm on a mass scale.
The 43-year-old initially began donating sperm in the Netherlands in 2007, going on to visit clinics for the better part of a decade.
Despite the law only allowing sperm donors to father up to 25 children (via 12 mothers), authorities in 2017 discovered that the musician had conceived a shocking 102 children.
Though he was forbidden from donating sperm in his own country, Meijer travelled around Europe and continued to donate sperm in clinics.
According to Cosmopolitan, the shaggy haired musician’s profile would even state that he resembled major A-List celebs like Chris Hemsworth and Brad Pitt.
He would also allegedly tell clinics that he was ‘exclusively’ donating to them, telling prospective parents that he’d only fathered ‘10’ children.
The Mirror report that Meijer also joined Facebook groups with couples looking for donors - and even offered private donations.
It was a chance meeting between parents that revealed the extent of his deception though, with those who had both had sperm donated by Meijer noticing the striking resemblance between their children.
Those affected by Meijer's mass sperm donation scheme later formed the Donorkind Foundation and eventually sued Meijer over his excessive donations.
Where is Jonathan Meijer now?
Jonathan Meijer was brought before a Dutch court in 2023 and the musician was banned from supplying sperm.
Authorities also ordered him to inform clinics about the deception, with a letter explaining that his remaining samples should be destroyed.
The court also stated that Meijer would also face fines if he continued, potentially paying between £85 - 88,000 per donation.
It is unclear where the musician is currently, however he regularly posts on YouTube with previous videos filmed in Tanzania and Italy.
Speaking about the upcoming docu-series, he told viewers, "I've seen the trailer, somebody sent it to me because I don't watch Netflix.
"I help people, that's it. I'm more sad that they decided to change the lives of all my donor children," he added.
Meijer also challenged claims about the number of kids he’d fathered and revealed that he'd declined the opportunity to appear in the Netflix documentary.
The Man With 1000 Kids is available to stream on Netflix from July 3
