My Top Five Most Memorable Watch Moments in Pop Culture...so far

These days, great marketing is, at its core, entertainment. In today’s oversaturated media landscape, David Ogilvy’s timeless quote— “You cannot bore people into buying your product; you can only interest them in buying it”—is more relevant than ever. This is also absolutely true for our favorite sector, which had a bunch of terrific pop-cultural moments in 2024, with watches being at the forefront. After returning from vacation on Monday and watching an incredible AP video (which I’ll kick off my list with), I felt inspired to put together my favorite watch moments in entertainment and pop culture this year… so far.?

KeineMusic x Audemars Piguet??

I’ll start with Audemars Piguet’s latest venture into popular culture. Last week, the brand hosted an exciting event near Zurich, featuring a collaboration with Berlin’s renowned electronic music group Keinemusik. This event followed AP’s previous forays into pop culture, including partnerships with Marvel’s Black Panther, Matthew Williams' Alyx, and Travis Scott, all centered around their iconic octagonal flagship. It’s great to see the Le Brassus brand now tapping into electronic music culture, once again demonstrating they are at the forefront of innovative watch marketing.

Hamilton's Movie Moments: From Oppenheimer to Dune?

Since James Bond's Rolex-wearing days during the swinging '60s, movies have been one of watch marketing's favorite vehicles. The not-so-much-talked-about watch brand Hamilton has done a terrific job successfully benefiting from two of the most popular films of the past two years.??

Christopher Nolan capped off the year with the success of Oppenheimer at the Oscars. In his films, 'time' is often a central theme, making specially designed watches a key feature of his storytelling. For Interstellar and Tenet, Hamilton previously crafted unique timepieces, and this year’s blockbuster Oppenheimer showcased the stunning Hamilton Cushion B, Lexington, and Endicott models, further elevating the role of watches in cinema. This close collaboration was no coincidence—Nolan’s prop director, Nathan Crowley, a known fan of Hamilton watches, helped solidify the brand’s integral presence in Nolan’s films.

Besides the longstanding collaboration with the British master director, Hamilton tapped into another all-time great: Denis Villeneuve, who directed Arrival, Blade Runner 2049, and of course this year's science-fiction epic, Dune: Part Two. Villeneuve's attention to detail extended to every element of the film, including the iconic timepieces. The 'Ventura XXL Bright Dune' and ‘Ventura Edge’ designed for the nomadic Fremen tribe stood out with their blue light design. The timepiece designed by Hamilton, shown as an essential part for the Fremen in the desert scenes, added significant authenticity to the film.

Omega x Olympics??

The brilliantly executed Paris Olympics might have been 2024's biggest stage of them all, and Omega definitely made the most of it. Besides being front, back, and center as official timekeeper (if you want to be a timekeeper anywhere, it is probably between this one or F1), they also created my favorite watch clip of the year! Larger-than-life athletes inhabiting Paris' numerous famous landmarks encapsulated the concept of this year's games perfectly. Easily one of the year’s standout marketing efforts!

Succession (Spoilers ahead...kinda late, but still)?

Even though every watch spotter’s favorite show, Succession, ended last year with Tom Wambsgans taking the helm of Waystar Royco, I’m including it in my list since I watched it this year. The series concluded in spectacular fashion, and the watches worn by the cast quickly became a fan obsession. With Kendall Roy’s dramatic style evolution, iconic models like the Patek Philippe Nautilus 5711, the limited edition Vacheron Constantin Harmony Mono-Pusher Chronograph (one of just 260 pieces), and the Richard Mille RM 67-01 took center stage. The show made a significant impact on both the watch and fashion worlds, with many attributing the rise of the 'quiet luxury' trend to its influence. For those seeking a new fix, I’ve heard Industry (another show about highly successful yet deeply flawed characters) might be the spiritual successor for watch spotters.?

Tag Heuer hit big with Ken and Kith?

The watch industry’s brightest shining testimonial these days is probably Ryan Gosling and partnering with the A-lister clearly paid dividends this year. After the Barbie movie took the world by storm last year, Ken showed out, performing the Oscar-nominated song at this year’s Oscars. The performance quickly went viral, and the TAG Heuer Carrera Plasma Diamonds Gosling wore on his microphone hand got some well-earned publicity. Apart from his stage watch, he also rocked three other TAG Heuer timepieces (TH Carrera 1158CHN, TH Carrera 110.515, and TH Carrera 2448NT) during the film.?

Besides Ken, there was another person very much interested in TAG Heuer watches. Ronnie Fieg’s (often coined the King of Collabs) streetwear giant Kith made a splash with a Moonswatch-like effort, bringing a nostalgic '90s vibe to a TAG Heuer Formula 1 watch. This collaboration has become one of the new generation's stylish but budget-friendly pieces in pop culture and tapped into two very interesting yet very different audiences: Millennial and Gen Z hypebeasts with a love for Fieg’s very NY brand, as well as fans of Formula 1, which is probably the sport with the biggest popularity surge since the pandemic.

Thanks to Tu?ana Yal??n and Hauke Trauernicht for their input to this post.??