The Ultimate Round-Up of Red Carpet Watches
Now that awards season is over, it’s time to look back on some of the show-stopping watches that graced the wrists of the Hollywood elite.
By Barbara Palumbo
Contributor
Awards season in America officially starts in September with the Emmys and goes until late February or early March with the Academy Awards. Every year, before, during, and after these shows, the fashion-centric Twitterati and your favorite Instagram influencers bring you the best in awards show fashion and present their must-have looks and accessories of the season. And while the dresses and the jewels are often a central focus for any red carpet, the men (and occasionally the women) do also get some wristwatch time in the spotlight. And for that, the horological community is grateful, and we’re pretty sure that the actors wearing the timepieces are pretty grateful, too.
But who rules the red carpet when it comes to getting watches on the wrists of Hollywood’s brightest stars? Let’s look at the three biggest awards shows of the last six months to find out who (horologically) wore what.
The 69th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, September of 2017
Happening just weeks prior to the New York Times’ investigative report on the accusations against Harvey Weinstein, the Primetime Emmy Awards will go down in history as the last of its kind in the pre-Time’s Up era. Those wearing black on the red carpet had chosen to for style purposes and the only pins we knew of were the ones accompanied by needles as we waited to see whether or not “This Is Us” was going to take home any awards. But out on the red carpet, just before the curtain rose and Stephen Colbert roasted his political foes, time stood still, even when the stars were walking.
Omega’s ambassadors included but were not limited to: Nicole Kidman and her co-star on the series, Big Little Lies, Alexander Skarsgard; both of who took away Emmy’s for their performances on the show. Kidman wore a radiant vintage OMEGA timepiece from 1956, with Skarsgard sporting the Seamaster Aqua Terra in yellow gold.
Also having a big showing that night was Montblanc, largely in the form of cufflinks on television’s biggest actors, but also in terms of timepieces. Westworld’s Jimmi Simpson wore the Star Quantieme Complet, and Shameless actor William H. Macy donned the Montblanc Heritage Chronometrie Automatic.
Perhaps a surprise on the red carpet – albeit a pleasant one – was the sighting of the Slim Classique 42mm timepiece in white gold by Ralph Lauren on actor Jeremy Piven. For me, it’s a perfect watch to accompany a tuxedo as it slides beautifully under the cuff.
The 75th Annual Golden Globe Awards, January of 2018
Managed by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, this year’s Golden Globes brought Hollywood’s storied, sometimes seedy dealings into the light by going dark. The women of Hollywood stood strong in their purpose and did so with the glamour and grace they’ve been known to put forth for ages. But that doesn’t mean that men, too, didn’t step up to the plate via pins on their lapels and in some cases watches, to remind themselves and us all of the importance of time, how it’s spent, how it’s wasted, and when it’s up.
Best Actor nominee for his role in the indie hit Call Me By Your Name, Timothée Chalamet, wore a beautiful Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Classic Medium Duoface Small Second (and this would not be the last time he would wear the brand on a red carpet. Read on.) Actor Edgar Ramirez was spotted in a Vacheron Constantin Traditionnelle timepiece, and Golden Globe winner Sterling K. Brown looked dashing (and happy) in the L.U.C 1937 Classic 42mm by Chopard.
But yet again, Montblanc made their mark by adorning the wrists of superstar spokesperson Hugh Jackman, with the Montblanc Heritage Spirit Pulsograph, as well as Baywatch actor Dwayne Johnson, who wore the 4810 ExoTourbillon Slim, among other actors.
The 90th Annual Academy Awards
While the ceremony ran nearly four hours in length, and while, overall, the Oscars still seem to struggle with diversity, all in, it was a pretty damned good show. Jimmy Kimmel was funny, he kept the show flowing (for the most part), and at the end, Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway were allowed the opportunity to fix the mishap that happened when the Best Picture winner was announced last year. And while the air was still filled with the dust left by Harvey Weinstein’s deserved departure, the clouds gave way to brightly-colored gowns, diamonds (some bigger than small countries), and LOTS of superb and even complicated watches.
Presenter Matthew McConaughey gave us all a big smile when he raised his wrist to reveal the Bulgari Octo Roma in Stainless Steel which accompanied his fabulous red velvet bow tie. Oscar Nominee Daniel Kaluuya looked regal in golden velvet and an IWC Ingenieur Chronograph, and as mentioned earlier, Timothée Chalamet wore Jaeger-LeCoultre once more, but this time, he chose to go with the Reverso Tribute Duoface in pink gold.
But like the two aforementioned awards events, Montblanc had a strong showing topped off by donning actor Armie Hammer – who doesn’t have a commitment to one brand right now and who has worn other watch brands on other red carpets – with a Heritage Spirit Pulsograph, as well as Academy Award winner Jordan Peele with their Star Classique time piece, which looked impeccable next to his new golden statue.
While keeping track of which stars wear which brands can get exhausting for those of us who both live tweet the red carpet and submit our next-day recap entries (yes, I keep a spreadsheet), the fact remains that Hollywood is a bit like our very own royalty. They’re our kings and queens, our dukes and duchesses, and for four-hour periods on just a handful of nights per year, we get to forget our woes and live vicariously through the glam and glitz that these red carpets bring. For all that is negative about Hollywood right now, the beauty of it still mostly remains, and sometimes that beauty happens to come in the form of a designer tuxedo accompanied by one of the world’s most elegant timepieces.
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