Action stars love a good watch. This is an indisputable fact. Pick any film from any era of action movies and you will see the hero rocking a fine timepiece. There are many reasons for this. Product placement is one and something particularly associated with the James Bond series. Often, the wardrobe department will select a watch they think befits the star and character. But, also, in many cases, the actor happens to be a man or woman with impeccable taste in watches.
Action heroes such as Sylvester Stallone, Steve McQueen, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Jason Statham have become renowned for the quality of timepieces they wear in their films, on the red carpet and when spotted by the paparazzi going about their business.
In many cases, the watch is an extension of the character. As important to them as the suit they’re wearing or the hairstyle on their head. The watch on their wrist emits their personality. James Bond is flash, more than a little bit brash. In comparison, Jason Bourne is rugged, practical, to the point. The watches both characters wear across their films reflect this.
While there are no shortage of great or memorable watches in the action genre, we have narrowed it down to spotlight just seven particularly noteworthy ones. Check them out below.
Sean Connery in Dr. No – Rolex Submariner Ref. 6538
It’s impossible to think of watches in films without immediately coming to James Bond. 007 has had a vast array of watches over the years, most recently wearing various Omegas but Ian Fleming wrote his super spy as a Rolex wearer and that’s exactly what adorned Sean Connery’s wrist in the first three James Bond films.
Specifically, Bond wore a Submariner 6538, which is suitably stainless steel with diving functionality to match his naval background. It’s very difficult to imagine the early Bond movies without a Rolex on the wrist of Connery – the height of cool throughout the 1960’s.
Clint Eastwood in In the Line of Fire – Rolex GMT-Master Root Beer
A noted Rolex aficionado, Clint Eastwood wore his own GMT-Master in a number of films in the 80’s and 90’s but it most notably decorated his wrist in action thriller In the Line of Fire, where he played a presidential bodyguard.
Easy to spot thanks to its gold and brown bezel, the piece might be a bit too flash for a real life secret service agent but nothing is too cool for Clint.
Steve McQueen in Le Mans – TAG Heuer Monaco
Perhaps the most influential movie watch of them all, TAG Heuer continue to base many of their designs around the Monaco worn by Steve McQueen in his 1972 racing film, Le Mans. McQueen is particularly associated with the blue dial of the watch and still appears in marketing material for the brand, showcasing just how strong the ties are between the legendary actor and TAG.
Just this week, it was revealed that the very watch McQueen wore in the movie would be coming to auction this summer. However, if you were hoping to bring home the watch, estimates are between $500,000 and $1,000,000. If that is too steep for your wallet, the piece is currently on show in Monaco as part of an exhibition until the end of the month.
Matt Damon in The Bourne Identity – TAG Heuer Link Chronograph
Jason Bourne can’t remember much but he must have had good taste in timepieces before getting amnesia. When he makes his way to Zurich and discovers his safety deposit box, revealed inside is a TAG Heuer Link Chronograph, a classically robust piece that looks right at home on Damon’s wrist.
The watch accompanies him across Europe as he outwits assassins in Paris, kills Clive Owen in the countryside and stages a one man war against the CIA. Damon must have liked the watch as he also wears it in the first two sequels before switching to a TAG Heuer Formula 1 for 2016’s Jason Bourne.
Jason Statham in Crank – TAG Heuer Carrera
Jason Statham gets up to much mischief across the course of Crank. He kills a man with another man’s severed hand. He romps in public with Amy Smart in the middle of Los Angeles’ Chinatown. Oh, and he falls several hundred feet from a helicopter and lives to tell the tale. But, he does it all in impeccable style with his Tag Heuer Carrera.
The smart, sleekness of the jet black dial and luminescent diamond-set hands make it a relatively subdued piece for the larger than life Chev Chelios and while Statham may be more associated with brands such as Panerai, it suits him very well.
Arnold Schwarzenegger in Commando – Seiko H558-5000
The former Governor of California had a big time love affair with Seiko in his heyday, wearing the brand in Predator and Raw Deal but the pinnacle of their relationship had to be with Commando. The H558-5000 features so prominently in the movie it might as well have a co-starring credit. Every shot of Arnie with a rocket launcher or knife or dispatching a henchman in hand-to-hand combat, there is the Seiko, impossible to ignore.
Part of the reason why is the size of the piece. Even on Schwarzenegger’s enormous frame, the H558-5000 stands out as unusually huge. And that’s because it is. 45mm in diameter and 46.5mm from lug to lug, it’s a watch for big wrists.
Sylvester Stallone in Daylight – Panerai Luminor
Stallone is a big reason for the explosion of popularity in Panerai in the 1990’s. The Italian watch brand only came to the civilian market in 1993 after previously only making pieces for the navy and shortly afterwards, Stallone started wearing them in his films. The first documented case of him wearing Panerai on screen is his 1996 action disaster flick, Daylight.
In Stallone’s own words, the renowned chronograph fanatic wanted to wear a watch nobody had worn before and fell in love with Panerai. The very watch he wore in the film, as well a letter written by the Oscar winner describing the Luminor, recently sold at auction for $214,200, more than five times its estimated value.
