When Guy Ritchie adapts The Gentlemen from the big screen to a TV series in 2024, he retains one of the most recognizable traits of his visual style: the use of objects as tools for characterization. Clothing, cars, interiors, and watches define the characters’ status, background, and taste; in the second season, this focus on wristwear becomes even more evident. Theo James, playing Eddie Horniman, switches from Rolex to Audemars Piguet, from Jaeger-LeCoultre to Omega, Chopard, and Panerai, while Vacheron Constantin, Ulysse Nardin, and other names in contemporary haute horlogerie appear around him.
Compared to the first season, the approach that Loulou Bontemps, costume designer and longtime collaborator of Ritchie’s, takes in curating the selection has also changed. In the first season, some of Eddie’s watches, including a rose-gold Nautilus, are portrayed as part of his paternal inheritance: items passed down along with the estate and the title, consistent with a character who suddenly finds himself the owner of a world to which he hasn’t yet decided whether he belongs.
In the second season, however, the watches are personal purchases, and it is this freedom that explains the collection’s eclecticism. What emerges is not a single school of design or a specific preference for a particular complication or manufacturer, but rather a wide range of different models, from neo-vintage chronographs to perpetual calendars and even professional diver’s watches reimagined in precious metals.
Rolex Cosmograph Daytona, ref. 16520
The Rolex Cosmograph Daytona, ref. 16520, recognizable by its stainless steel case and white dial, belongs to the generation that marks one of the most important milestones in the history of the Corona chronograph. Introduced in 1988 and produced until 2000, the 16520 introduced automatic winding to the Daytona family and increased the case size to 40 millimeters, adopting sapphire crystal and a dial design that is now very similar to that of contemporary models.
Inside, it is powered by the Rolex 4030 caliber, which was developed based on the Zenith El Primero 400 but underwent substantial modifications: Rolex eliminated the date function, modified the regulating system and the balance wheel, altered numerous components, and, most notably, reduced the frequency from the original 36,000 to 28,800 vibrations per hour, prioritizing reliability and longer service intervals over the Zenith’s characteristic high frequency. This is a particularly interesting reference because it belongs to a brief chapter in Rolex’s history, preceding the arrival in 2000 of the in-house 4130 caliber, and it has since become one of the benchmarks for neovintage Daytona collecting.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar, Ref. 26674ST
With the Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar, Ref. 26674ST.OO.1320ST.01 , Audemars Piguet incorporates the perpetual calendar, one of watchmaking’s most traditional complications, into the latest technical evolution of the Royal Oak.
The steel case measures 41 millimeters in diameter and is 9.5 millimeters thick; it retains the integrated bracelet and the blue dial decorated with the Grande Tapisserie pattern, while inside it features the automatic caliber 7138, introduced in 2025. The main innovation does not concern the information displayed but rather the way in which it is adjusted : thanks to a patent-protected system , all the calendar corrections can be made via the crown , without resorting to the traditional small correctors set into the case band .
Jaeger-LeCoultre Duometre Chronograph Moon
The Jaeger-LeCoultre Duometre Chronograph Moon ref. Q622252J is probably the most mechanically complex piece of the entire selection. The rose gold case measures 42.5 millimeters by 14.2 millimeters, but the real interest lies in the manual caliber 391 , composed of 482 parts and built according to the Dual – Wing principle that defines the Duometre collection .
Two separate barrels and two distinct gear trains power the time display and the complications independently, yet both feed into the same regulating mechanism: a solution designed to prevent the activation of the chronograph from drawing power from the time train and altering the amplitude of the balance wheel.
The movement operates at 3 Hz, offers a 50-hour power reserve, and features a single-push-button chronograph, moon phase display, day/night indicator, two power reserve indicators, and a foudroyante seconds hand. Rather than through the sheer number of complications, the Duometre thus stands out for the way it integrates them, addressing at its root one of the classic problems of complicated watches: power distribution.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Tribute Chronograph
The Reverso Tribute Chronograph adapts the chronograph complication to the geometry of the famous rectangular case, originally designed in 1931 to be flipped over and protect the dial during polo matches. In the rose gold model Q389257J, the case measures 49.4 x 29.9 millimeters and houses the hand-wound 860-shaped caliber, an integrated chronograph with a column wheel and horizontal engagement, a frequency of 4 Hz, and a 52-hour power reserve.
The double-sided design allows the front side to feature a minimalist display of hours and minutes, while the skeletonized back side houses the chronograph functions, with a large central seconds hand and a retrograde 30-minute counter. The movement must also manage two sets of hands positioned on opposite sides of the case and cause both to move clockwise, even though their physical orientation is naturally opposite.
Another Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso appears on the wrist of Susie Glass, played by Kaya Scodelario, who wears a rose gold Reverso Classic Duetto set with diamonds. Compared to her business partner’s Tribute Chronograph, here the reversible case design takes on a more distinctly jewelry-inspired aesthetic, while still preserving one of the Maison’s most recognizable architectural features.
Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch Professional Moonshine Gold
The Speedmaster Moonwatch Professional ref. 310.60.42.50.10.001 It retains the technical configuration and fundamental proportions of the contemporary Moonwatch, but replaces the steel with a case made entirely of 18-karat Moonshine Gold, a proprietary Omega alloy characterized by a paler hue than traditional yellow gold and formulated to maintain greater color stability over time.
The asymmetrical case measures 42 millimeters; the green dial features the traditional stepped design, and the matching ceramic bezel incorporates a Ceragold tachymeter scale. The manual-winding Caliber 3861 represents a contemporary evolution of the Speedmaster’s architecture: it incorporates the Co-Axial escapement and a silicon balance spring, operates at 3 Hz, offers a 50-hour power reserve, and is Master Chronometer certified by METAS, including resistance to magnetic fields of at least 15,000 gauss.
Despite the use of a precious metal and a design that is a far cry from its original practical function, the manual winding mechanism, the three-subdial layout, the tachymeter scale, and numerous design elements reminiscent of past generations of the Moonwatch remain intact.
Panerai Radiomir Quaranta PAM01026
The Radiomir Quaranta PAM01026 reduces to 40 millimeters one of the shapes most closely associated with Panerai’s history, that cushion-shaped case, originally designed for instruments used by the Italian Navy’s special units, which, during the 1990s and 2000s, became synonymous with significantly larger proportions.
The case and bezel are made of Goldtech, a proprietary Panerai alloy characterized by a high copper content, which gives it its warm, reddish hue, to which platinum is added to enhance its long-term stability. The white sunburst-brushed dial features large Arabic numerals and luminescent hour markers, along with a small seconds sub-dial at 9 o’clock and a date window at 3 o’clock.
The P.900 automatic movement, just 4.2 millimeters thick, operates at 28,800 vibrations per hour and achieves a three-day power reserve through a single mainspring barrel. With a water resistance of 30 meters, the Quaranta abandons any real claim to being a diving watch and instead draws on the Radiomir’s design heritage to create a watch with contemporary proportions, leaning more toward an elegant style than the large Panerai models that defined the brand’s image during its years of international expansion.
Panerai Luminor Due Goldtech
The Luminor Due Goldtech, which appears on Bobby Glass’s wrist, represents another major reinterpretation that Panerai has undertaken from its archives. It retains the lever mechanism that protects and secures the crown, arguably the most instantly recognizable feature of the Luminor family, but houses it in a 42-millimeter case that is approximately 10.5 millimeters thick, significantly slimmer than the traditional design.
This model also features a P.900 automatic movement with a 72-hour power reserve and a frequency of 4 Hz. This Panerai, too, deliberately alters the proportions, thickness, and water resistance of its vintage model to preserve the aesthetic language of the original within a very different category of use.
Panerai Radiomir 1940 3 Days Red Gold PAM00515
The Radiomir 1940 3 Days Red Gold PAM00515, worn by Lord Hawthorne, belongs to a phase of Panerai’s production that is much closer, at least in terms of proportions, to the reconstructions of historic military models. The red gold case measures 47 millimeters; the brown dial retains the minimalist and highly legible design typical of the brand; and the movement is the manual-winding P.3000, a 5.3-millimeter-thick in-house caliber equipped with two barrels connected in series to ensure a three-day power reserve.
It operates at a relatively slow frequency of 21,600 vibrations per hour, consistent with a design that prioritizes a large balance wheel and robustness over the pursuit of high frequency.
Vacheron Constantin Historiques 222
On Sheikh Khaled Suliman’s wrist is the Vacheron Constantin Historiques 222, a contemporary reissue of the watch designed by Jörg Hysek in 1977 to celebrate the Maison’s 222nd anniversary. The yellow gold model 4200H/222J-B935 retains the original’s relatively compact proportions, with a monobloc case measuring 37 millimeters in diameter and 7.95 millimeters thick, an integrated bracelet, and a small Maltese Cross applied to the case at the 5 o’clock position.
The 2455/2 automatic movement, visible through the sapphire caseback, operates at 4 Hz, offers approximately 40 hours of power reserve, and is certified with the Geneva Seal. Historically, the 222 belongs to the same era that produced the Royal Oak and the Nautilus, but it was created by a different designer and retains its own distinct design identity; its recent rediscovery is now helping to restore its precise place in the history of integrated sports watches from the 1970s.
Rolex Submariner Date in yellow gold
The yellow gold Rolex Submariner Date, seen on Cico Maldini’s wrist, takes one of the most rigorous archetypes of professional watchmaking and translates it entirely into precious metal. In contemporary versions, the Oyster case measures 41 millimeters, retains its water resistance to 300 meters, features a unidirectional rotating bezel with a Cerachrom insert, and incorporates the Oyster bracelet design with a Glidelock clasp, which allows for seamless length adjustment without tools.
The 3235 automatic movement features the Chronergy escapement, a blue Parachrom hairspring, and a large mainspring barrel that provides a power reserve of approximately 70 hours. Despite being crafted in gold, the professional specifications that define the steel Submariner remain essentially unchanged: a blend of instrument and precious object that Rolex has been perfecting for decades and that constitutes an important part of the model’s history itself.
Ulysse Nardin Marine Chronometer Manufacture
For Amir, a Ulysse Nardin Marine Chronometer Manufacture was chosen, a model that directly draws on one of the most historically significant chapters in the Le Locle-based manufacturer’s history: the production of marine chronometers designed for navigation. In the 43-millimeter version, the robust case, fluted bezel, large Roman numerals, and small seconds sub-dial with date window at 6 o’clock translate the design of shipboard chronometers into a contemporary wristwatch.
Inside, it is powered by the in-house UN-118 automatic movement, featuring an escapement made with silicon components, a frequency of 4 Hz, and a power reserve of approximately 60 hours. Ulysse Nardin is among the first watchmakers to adopt silicon in modern mechanical watchmaking, using it not merely as an experimental material but as a structural component in its mass-produced timepieces.
“The Gentlemen 2” brings an incredible collection of watches to the big screen
A Daytona still based on a Zenith ébauche sits alongside a Royal Oak equipped with a caliber introduced in 2025, while a single-push-button military chronograph shares the stage with a perpetual calendar. The selection in The Gentlemen 2 is broad, at times even chaotic, and deliberately eclectic. It brings together very different watchmakers, eras, and approaches to mechanical watchmaking, all of which serve to reflect and gauge the maturity and evolution of Eddie Horniman, and his world, from the first to the second season.
In the first chapter, the watch belongs primarily to the language of inheritance, it is an object received along with a title, property, and a world already established. In the second season, however, it is something chosen, and therefore more personal and less predictable. This difference allows Loulou Bontemps and the costume department to draw from a much broader and, in some cases, exceptionally specialized repertoire.
The overall value of the pieces remains remarkable, but it matters less than the variety with which the collection spans chronographs, perpetual calendars, diver’s watches, integrated sports watches, and specialty-shaped watches, bringing together historic models and contemporary interpretations. It therefore remains to be seen whether a third season will lead Eddie Hornimann toward a more cohesive and recognizable collection, or whether this very apparent inconsistency will continue to be part of his character.
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