Shirtless Bear Grylls emerges from his luxury Costa Rica hotel with mud on his face as filming gets underway for his new Netflix show

A stony-faced Bear Grylls emerged from his luxury hotel with his face covered in black sand and mud as filming began on his latest £10million Netflix project: Bear Hunt.

The former SAS trooper and survival expert is currently in Costa Rica alongside former This Morning star Holly Willoughby to present the reality competition show which sees celebrities come face to face in the jungle.

Topless Grylls, 49, who wore navy blue swimming trunks, appeared on the beach in Guanacaste province with a friend and his son Jesse, 20, after a day of preparing for the television show.

The star, who is staying in an oceanfront hotel that can cost up to £531 a night, walked on the beach before plunging into the Pacific Ocean to wash off the sludge covering his hands, face and chest.

According to locals, Willoughby, 41, is also said to be staying at the picturesque hotel as she embarks on her first major presenting gig after quitting This Morning in the wake of the Phillip Schofield scandal.

Rumor has it that Scary Spice Mel B, former tennis pro Boris Becker and Kate Moss’ younger sister Lottie will all take part in the show, which airs next year.

Inbetweeners star Joe Thomas, daytime TV presenter Steph McGovern and rugby legend Danny Cipriani are also part of the cast, alongside model Leomie and rapper Big Zuu.

Grylls was spotted paragliding on a black sand beach last week, while his eldest son Jesse, who is a musician, took a solo skydive over the coast.

The action man was also spotted almost naked on the palm tree-filled beach as he enjoyed the £55 massage on the beach, with just a towel around his waist.

Since arriving in Costa Rica in late April, Grylls has been getting regular tans at the beach salon after discovering it while scouting locations earlier this year.

“The massage ladies love him and say he is a very friendly and down to earth man,” a source told the Sun. “Bear speaks a little Spanish and she speaks a little English, so that’s how they communicate.”

Yet an insider told MailOnline that Bear had stopped his regular massages for fear of being photographed again.

Meanwhile, Willoughby, who has not presented since Dancing on Ice in January, appeared relaxed as she walked along the beach in sunglasses, trainers and a band T-shirt.

It is unclear where the other celebrities are staying with the presenter, but Lottie Moss shared a TikTok video of her in a hotel room with a large bag half unpacked.

Earlier this week it was revealed that celebrities on the show had been warned about the dangers to wildlife that arose during the filming of the show.

Those appearing on the grueling adventure show were reportedly told to watch out for rabid vampire bats and deadly snakes as they began filming in the rainforest of Central American countries.

A medical team is also on call day and night to ensure the well-being of the stars on the show.

“The Bear Hunt is not for the faint of heart and all the celebrities who have signed up know they are going into the wilds teeming with nasty animals,” said a source.

‘In addition to snakes such as the poisonous pig-nosed viper and spiders such as the black widow and the brown recluse, the jungle is also teeming with bats that can spread rabies.

“Of course, Netflix has taken every precaution to ensure the safety of everyone working on the show, from the crew to the celebrities, but it is a show that is not for the faint of heart.”

Last week, Mel B, 48, accidentally confirmed that she will appear on the new Netflix show, dropping a huge hint confirming that she will be joining A-list names on the grueling endurance show.

She shared a video last Wednesday in which she captured herself enjoying a cold bath in a tropical location similar to Costa Rica, where the show is filmed.

The star was seen leaving a wooden bungalow and heading to an icy swimming pool, where she braved the cold.

After the quick dip, the singer, who flew to Costa Rica in late April, was seen quickly running to her towel nearby. She showed off her incredibly toned figure in a blue printed bikini and bandeau top.

“I love the sun and my ice baths have the best time but that was HARDDDD, maybe I’ll do it again, no I love my ice baths,” she captioned the video.

Her appearance follows reports that she has been paid a six-figure sum to appear on the show, in which stars will be forced to rely on their survival skills to avoid master adventurer Grylls.

Mel’s hint comes after it was suggested that Little Mix’s Jesy Nelson, 32, will not appear in the upcoming series.

A television source teased that the upcoming show, which also stars Kola Bokinnil, Shirley Ballas, Una Healy and Laurence Llewellyn-Bowen, is “going to be a big hit” and the streaming giant is “putting a lot of money into it” with the intention of already having a second series of plans.