It all began back in 1995 with GoldenEye, when it was decided that the world’s best known spy, diver and dapper dresser, James Bond, should wear a Seamaster with a blue dial. James Bond 007 has worn Omega Seamasters in every film since then. Prior to that he sported a host of different watch brands including Rolex, Seiko and Breitling. Fast forward to 2020 and No Time to Die, the 25th film in the saga and the last to feature Daniel Craig as James Bond. The film had its world premier in London last September 28th, 2021. Bond sports an Omega Seamaster Diver 300M 007 Edition in tough, rugged and lightweight titanium for the action-packed situations he, as usual, finds himself in. The watch is powered with the house’s Co-Axial Master chronometer and sports an elegant 42mm dial.

Back in 2015 in Spectre, Bond, the ex-naval commander also opted for a Seamaster, and not just one, but two. The Omega Seamaster 300 Spectre Limted Edition with lollipop seconds hand and black and gray NATO strap as well as the Omega Aqua Terra 150 meter with a striking blue dial co-starred in the film. Skyfall, brought out in 2012, has James Bond wearing a Planet Ocean 600M and a dressy Aqua Terra, both powered with Omega Co-Axial calibers. In Quantum of Solace, released in 2008, 007 opted for a Seamaster Planet Ocean Omega co-axial with a classic black dial and bezel. And for his first James Bond film, Casino Royale in 2006, Daniel Craig wore a Seamaster Diver 300M Co-Axial and a Planet Ocean 600M Co-axial.

Meanwhile the Omega’s Seamaster Diver 300M currently on the silver screen and Bond’s wrist in No Time to Die is outfitted with a titanium mesh bracelet and a brown tropical bezel ring and dial. It is powered by Omega’s self-wing Co-Axial Chronometer 8806 movement regarded as having achieved the industry’s highest standards of precision, chronometric performance and magnetic resistance, a hallmark of Omega. It has a power reserve of 55 hours and as its name indicates is water resistant to 300 meters or one thousand feet.

The grade 2 titanium in which the timepiece is fashioned is like all titanium alloys, light, corrosion-resistant and able to withstand extreme temperatures. And it is ultra light.

« When OMEGA has shown me titanium watches in the past, I’ve always grabbed them and thought, ‘wow, that’s fantastic.’ It’s like you’re not even wearing a watch, and I think they took that on board and said, ‘let’s make it,’ »Commented Daniel Craig who has played an active role in the development of the 007 watch for the James Bond films he has starred in.

« In SPECTRE, we really went into detail on the watch and its design. This new watch has also really been an amalgamation of many discussions. It’s really down to OMEGA. I had some suggestions, but they went away and ran with it. Raynald (Editor’s note: Raynald Aeschlimann, the CEO of Omega) really let the design team go and do what they wanted. When they showed it to me, I genuinely said, ‘you’ve done it.’ There was nothing in the end that I needed to add, » said Mr. Craig.

Mr. Craig is no stranger to Omega watches. His first Omega watch was given to him by his father for his 18th birthday. It was a gold dress watch, Mr. Craig explained.
« There’s a partnership between OMEGA and Bond which is beneficial for both of us, and I always thought that we should be talking to each other. It shouldn’t just be that you turn up on the first day of shooting and they say, ‘this is your watch.’ I’m just not built that way. I want to know what the watch is early on. I want to know what I’ll be wearing and what it’s going to look like, » he added.
©Trish Valicenti for The Gourmet Gazette
https://www.omegawatches.com/