Men want to be him. Women want to be with him. Watch lovers want his watches. In all of his forms from the page to the screen, James Bond has been as particular about his watches as he is about his martinis. Ever since Ian Fleming created the classy secret agent in his 1953 novel Casino Royale, his style has been meticulous. With the inception of the film franchise, our favorite playboy has never ceased to impress with his fashion choices, in particular, his wrist wear. Here are 5 of our favorite handsome watches and the handsome Bonds who wore them.
1.) Rolex Submariner Oyster Perpetual.
Of course, we’ll start with the original: the Rolex Submariner Oyster Perpetual. Sean Connery’s Bond was the ultimate in suavity, paving the way for all future Bonds in poised and mysterious glory. In 1962’s Dr. No, if you managed to peel your eyes away from Ursula Andress emerging from the water in her unforgettable white bikini, you’d see the original 007 enjoying the same view with this timepiece on his wrist. This is the “Bond, James Bond” of Rolex.
2.) Rolex Pre-Daytona Chronograph.
In 1969, an entirely different version of the 007 agent donned an entirely different Rolex. While Ian Fleming named the Rolex Oyster Perpetual as his character’s timepiece (and a “most effective knuckle duster”) in his 1963 novel On Her Majesty’s Royal Service, in the 1969 film of the same name, David Lazenby wore both the Oyster Perpetual and the Rolex Pre-Daytona Chronograph. George Lazenby only appeared once as James Bond (even though he was offered a 7 film contract) just like this Pre-Daytona only graced Bond’s wrist once while skiing in the Swiss Alps.
3.) Hamilton Pulsar P2 2900 LED.
The 70’s brought on a new fascination with digital, and whether you believe it or not, the famous MI6 agent himself wore his own LED watch when it was the height of advanced technology. Roger Moore’s James Bond in 1973’s Live and Let Die wore a Hamilton Pulsar P2 2900 LED, revealed at the very start of the film. While the watch only had the ability to show time, without any additional functions whatsoever, the P2 was the first popular, mass-produced digital watch before being replaced by LCD watches. The Bond in this film also wore a Rolex Submariner (are you sensing a theme yet?) and, surprisingly, at the time Hamlton’s Pulsar P2 was priced close to the same as Mr. Bond’s stainless steel Rolex.
4.) Omega Seamaster 300M Quartz Professional.
Pierce Brosnan played Bond for seven years and never once wore anything other than an Omega Seamaster Professional Diver. The 90’s brought on an era of product placement that had not been seen before with our leading men and Omega was the first to take hold of Bond this way. In 1995’s GoldenEye, the first film to welcome Pierce Brosnan as 007, he wears an Omega Seamaster 300M Quartz Professional, upgrading to a Chronometer in all his remaining films. In GoldenEye, Bond’s ally-turned-enemy Alec Trevelyan, wears the exact same Omega Seamaster but on a black strap, perhaps a sign of his impending betrayal of MI6.
5. Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean.
Our most recent Bond is played by Daniel Craig, who wears Omega just like his predecessor. In the 2006 film Casino Royale, Craig wore an Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean, which held up well through all of the extreme physicality this James Bond is known for. Omega released a limited version of the watch with the aptly chosen limited number of 5,007 watches to coincide with the release of the film. The timepiece even featured a 007 gun logo on the dial for those of us who are particularly die-hard fans.
