By Teresa Greco
Aluxury watch is a prized possession built to last a lifetime and then passed down through the generations. A timeless heirloom worn on the wrist tells a story and never ages, much like James Bond. No matter your favourite 007—starting with Sean Connery in 1962’s Dr. No, through George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, and Daniel Craig—Bond has served as an icon for everything from cars to suits to watches.
James Bond has been a character that has been relatable to many over the years due to a “Je ne sais quoi” about him. Daniel Craig himself said, “There’s something we immediately understand with this man. He gets the bad guy, but he does it with style.” The style factor of James Bond is undeniable and can be observed in the forthcoming spy film No Time to Die. Due out later this year, No Time to Die is the twenty-fifth instalment in the James Bond film series produced by Eon Productions. The film stars Daniel Craig for the fifth and final time as James Bond.
Bond’s image has changed over the decades, from fighter (Connery) to lover (Moore) to intellectual (Brosnan) to brawny (Craig), rising out of the waves in the 2006 remake of Casino Royale. We have all come to know Bond as a man who wears custom suits from the world’s best tailors, dates gorgeous women, drives the finest cars, and detonates bombs from the tips of his bespoke shoes with a level of sophistication and cool, regardless of the challenging circumstances. It is not a wonder then that the premium watch manufacturer Omega wanted to collaborate with Craig on the newest Omega Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial Master Chronometer 42mm 007 Edition, as worn in No Time to Die
Watches have been essential to the 007 brand. Although Bond originally wore a Rolex Perpetual Oyster Submariner (worn by Connery in the first four Bond films), he switched allegiances to a more historically accurate Omega Seamaster Professional Diver in 1995’s Goldeneye. Lindy Hemming, the film’s costume designer, learned that if Bond were a true British navy man, he would wear an Omega, as his backstory has it. Since then, Bond has worn the brand, which is not going to change in No Time to Die.
A longtime watch lover, Craig “wanted it to be something a man of action could genuinely rely on in tough situations,” said Omega CEO Raynald Aeschlimann, explaining how Craig was “very much involved in giving us the vision, giving us also what he feels that James Bond today in the 21st century should wear as a watch.” This non-limited watch was built with military needs in mind, and Daniel’s own experience as 007 influenced the final design.
Currently available for sale, this is the first time a Bond watch is made from titanium. The Seamaster Diver 300m 007 Edition uses Grade 2 Titanium for the 42 mm case and titanium mesh bracelet, making this watch particularly strong and light – perfect for an undercover agent. We decided that a lightweight watch would be key for a military man like 007,” expressed Craig. The case is slightly slimmer at 13.15mm than the steel version, which measures 13.50mm.”
The “tropical” brown dial and bezel ring are both made from aluminium. These elements have been given a classic look, thanks to the vintage Super-LumiNova, which fills the diving scale, blackened hands, and indexes. Those tanned features are typically developed over years of wear, but Omega has gone ahead and pre-patinaed this watch, which will only continue to age even more deeply over time.
A reference to the Bond films is noted in the inscribed serial number on the caseback. The second to last sequence of the serial number features the numbers ‘007,’ and the ‘62’ that follows it refers to the year the first Bond movie was released. Below the lower dial text, we find a broad arrow insignia, the symbol used to mark the issued property of the British government (another nod to Bond’s status as a government agent).
The innovation continues inside the watch with the selfwinding OMEGA Co‑Axial Master Chronometer Calibre 8806. The movement and watch have achieved the industry’s highest certified standard of precision, performance, and magnetic resistance. The watch is Master Chronometer Certified, has 55 hours of power reserve, and can dive to 300 meters. The watch can be chosen on a titanium mesh bracelet with its innovative adjustable buckle, or on a striped NATO strap in dark brown, grey, and beige, with 007 engraved on the loop. Each piece is delivered inside an exclusive waxed canvas travel case (material supplied by British Millerain).
Along with donning the Omega Seamaster 300M 007 Edition on his wrist, Craig will be seen wearing a wardrobe that is still aspirational (sleek Tom Ford suits, Crockett & Jones dress shoes, shawl-collar tuxedo) but leans toward the real (a breezy, sand-coloured Massimo Alba sloop suit for a car chase in Italy, or Drake’s crepe-soled chukka boots).
In No Time to Die, James Bond is wearing the Omega Seamaster 300M 007 Edition in several scenes filmed in London (Whitehall, MI6 Headquarters, Thames scenes) and in Jamaica when he drives a Land Rover Series III, meeting his old friend Felix Leiter. He also wears the watch with his Commando outfit (blue sweater by luxury British brand N.Peal, commando cargo pants, and a white Henley shirt). Omega wanted to create a watch that would fit both sides of the spy’s character, “He has a character that, on one side, is an incredible adventurer who has a lot of missions,” Aeschlimann remarked, “And on the other side, a gentleman who represents the best of the British Secret Service.”
Bond’s watch has become as iconic to 007’s appearance as any Aston Martin or perfectly tailored tuxedo, which is why, “When a new James Bond film launches, we see a huge sales spike in the watch 007 wears,” Aeschlimann revealed, “People get inspired by his style choices.” Craig said he wanted to create a watch that suited his Bond specifically. “If you were in real trouble, you could wrap it around your knuckles and smack someone in the face with it, which is kind of an important thing,” he joked during a news conference, “It’s a military watch, and it feels like a military watch, but it’s elegant.” To wear the same watch as your favourite Bond, it runs for $8,100
USD on a NATO strap—or $9,200 USD for one with a mesh bracelet, which is the one Daniel Craig advocated for. The Omega Seamaster Diver 300M 007 Edition is confident, distinctive, and tough – the perfect watch to commemorate the 25th Bond film and Daniel Craig’s final outing as 007.