How Are Watches Perfectly Casted in Movies? (Rolex, Seiko, JLC, Heuer, Cartier)

A Discussion around Watches in Movies and how sometimes the perfect watch can be cast alongside the character. We know as enthusiasts that wrist watches are able to reflect us and our personal tastes. In films, we can see that watches can reflect and further explain the backgrounds to characters. Some do this better than others.

#WatchesInFilm #WatchesInMovies

All Images are Sourced from either Press Release Photos or Public Listings.
Below are a list of the common sources that are used in no particular order:

Bob’s Watches | Revolution Watch | HQ Milton | Hodinkee | Monochrome Watches | Jomashop | Analog Shift | Bulang and Sons | Robb Report | Watchfinder | WatchBox | Phillips Watches | Christies | Timekeepers Club | Fratello Watches | Bexsonn | Worn and Wound | A Collected Man | Oracle Time | Time + Tide Watches

[livingdeadman]

A nice nod to watch fans was a scene in X-Men Dark Phoenix. Professor X wears a Rolex Milgauss ref. 116400 when he has a meeting with Magneto. It's definitely a watch chosen by the character specifically due to its anti magnetic qualities.

[Apis]

I recall reading or hearing somewhere recently, that the Patrick Bateman character in American Psycho wears a Seiko 5, in two tone, gold steel, with fluted bezel. It looks like a Rolex from a distance, but it is not. They HAD to switch to a Seiko from their plan to have him wear the Rolex, because Rolex would not let them use one of their watches in such a movie, and so they were forced to go with a watch which would look like a Date-Just from a distance... but I am pretty sure it is a Seiko 5.

[AgrippaBC]

The GMT bezel also is often used to keep track of “home time” when away from home. By removing the bezel, one can relate that to Colonel Kurtz abandoning any connection to home.

[edwardcrater]

My two grail watches are those worn by Mel Gibson in Braveheart and Russell Crowe in Gladiator.

[brunonjezic]

One of the best castings is The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou and vostok amphibia. Perfect portrait of the caracter through watch

[kojiattwood]

In the remake of Thomas Crown, Pierce Brosnan sports a JLC Reverso, which, like Bruce Wayne is a nice touch highlighting the duality of the character (and Crown's is the classic version, when flipped it hides the face)

[marchristianque]

where are the Hamiltons from the movie Interstellar? ^~^

[galaga]

There are plenty of nice watches here but the watch with the most character here is the legendary Seiko SKX009. Not the best but the most charming dive watch in the world. A modern yet simplistic masterpiece.

[TheDonVolga]

Its so nice that you display the sources of images directly on screen, it really shows how respectful you are. With the added good content of the video, you have gained my respect as well Sir.

[northscylla]

If it was a brand deal, then you heavily roasted Tag Heuer here ahah

[aristheophilakis]

Steve McQueen in The Thomas Crown Affair also wears a gold JLC Memovox. You can briefly see it when he is out shopping at some fruit stalls in Boston with Faye Dunaway in the happy romance part of the movie.

[TheUkester]

I agree about Redford's character in All is Lost (which is a great film, by the way). The SKX is an "instrument" that fulfills a specific and vital function, similar to the instrument he takes on the raft with him as a means of navigation. And the watch is the one constant. He has to think creatively about the boat itself and all of the other things he either salvages or surrenders as the boat goes down. The watch is just about the only thing that's "easy to understand."

[jimmysplit]

You got me, I’m one of those guys that watches movies because of the wrist watches being worn lol.
Always appreciate your videos, well done!
Cheers idguy

[southpark]

I'm sure it's been mentioned in the comments but how can you forget Interstellar and the Hamilton watches? They played a HUGE roll and were practically personified in the movie.

[golfnaked]

As a watch guy I’m often frustrated by the choices. Great care and Attention is spent on finding a watch that expresses the character’s personality and price is so often ignored. I’m sitting there watching a movie where the character is suppose to be an everyday working stiff and he’s wearing a $30K watch while driving a 10 year old minivan.

[geezer]

Bruce Wayne (Val Kilmer) also wore a JLC reverso with video call function in 1995 Batman Forever... separately, I enjoyed seeing Panerai in the Transporter worn by Frank Martin (Jason Statham) and JLC reverso on Adrien Brody in the Pianist... Fun topic ID Guy!

[adventures]

Connery (Bond) wore a Breitling in Thunderball, that was the image that got me into watches hence I now have 2

[mgb]

Another fine watch video by ID Guy. Well thought out and presented.

[reality-cheque]

Bond wears his Rolex Submariner in Thunderball - about 92 minutes in, when he swims ashore and discovers Largo's crews' diving gear, we get a good long look at it, when he checks the time. The Breitling was just a geiger-counter to check the presence of nuclear weapons.
Tom Cruise's Panerai PAM 63 GMT in Tropic Thunder is worth a mention - they are quite rare - unlike the ubiquitous Rolex (the watch for those who no little about watches).

[UGA.D]

Nice video... but I can't believe you left out one of the most prolific watch manufacturers to ever grace the screen... Hamilton. Whether the field watches of Pearl Harbor, the Ventura in Men in Black, the "Murph" of Interstellar or the Below Zero of the Martian, few companies have tied iconic watches to iconic characters like Hamilton.