Cool as Hamilton’s new Homeric-themed bronze field watch may be, Christopher Nolan has broken out a different piece from his cinematic universe during recent interviews for The Odyssey press tour: his Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso. And while it may look like a run-of-the-mill Tribute to 1931—the stripped-back, classic-looking reference made to honor the very first Reverso model—it actually holds a special secret.
Flip the watch’s famously reversible caseback over, and you’re greeted with a pixelated image of the Bat symbol in black enamel. Why? The ref. 277.8.62 was made in a 10-piece limited run back in 2012 for the debut of The Dark Knight Rises, the final film in Nolan’s Batman trilogy. Peek within its reversible frame, and you’ll notice the inside case is inscribed “2012 Warner Bros. Ent. Inc. TM & © DC Comics (s12),” indicating it was made especially for Warner Bros. executives and Nolan himself. When one came up for auction at Antiquorum back in 2013, it sold for $16,250. No doubt that 13 years later, with the explosion in popularity of both the watch-collecting hobby as well as Nolan’s films, it would draw significantly more attention.
Outside of the “Bat signal,” the ref. 277.8.62 is a restrained dress watch of the highest order: made of stainless steel and measuring 46 x 27mm, it features brushed and polished finishing, iconic Reverso gadroons, a sapphire crystal, and a black dial with an outer railroad minute track, luminous baton indices, luminous sword hands, and the “Reverso” wordmark in vintage-inspired typeface. Powered by the hand-wound Jaeger-LeCoultre cal. 822 movement, the watch measures just 7mm thick, echoing the original run of svelte timepieces that were designed to withstand the rigors of polo matches in India during the waning days of the Raj.
Surprisingly, the Reverso delivers all sorts of connections to Gotham’s hero over the course of Hollywood history. During Batman Forever, Val Kilmer’s Bruce Wayne likewise wore a Reverso—a Grand Taille model—which he used to communicate with Alfred long before the days of FaceTime. Later, in Nolan’s own trilogy, Christian Bale’s take on the Caped Crusader strapped on both the Reverso Grande Taille as well the Reverso Grande Date 8 Days, continuing a tradition that helps cement Wayne’s reputation as a well-to-do heir.
