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| Omega Globmaster brand ambassador Eddie Redmayne |
British actor Eddie Redmayne is known for taking on challenging roles. His latest challenge will be the role as the newest ambassador of the Omega watch brand. He was officially introduced as the face of the Omega Globemaster at Mack Sennett Studios in Los Angeles Tuesday with a Hollywood style gala.
The watch collection, which houses the brand’s most advanced mechanical movement and features a design inspired by early Constellation models, was unveiled more than a year ago and Redmayne’s selection of being its international spokesperson not long after. But it wasn’t till now that both the Globemaster and its new representative were ready for full global exposure. The brand also debuted an online adverting campaign with Redmayne.
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| President and CEO of Omega Stephen Urquhart with Redmayne attend the launch of the Globemaster, the worlds first master chronometer, at Mack Sennett Studios on March 1 in Los Angeles. (Photo by Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images for Omega)” |
Redmayne received a 2015 Academy Award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Stephen Hawking in the film, “The Theory of Everything,” and was nominated for a second Oscar in 2016 for “The Danish Girl.”
He said on stage that the Globemaster’s design has both a classic and modern appeal. “I can kind of wear it with anything,” he said. “I don't like watches to be overstated or ostentatious or crying out too much, but you want to feel a weight to them and a history to them. For me, in a subtle way, it makes you feel stronger having a decent watch on.”
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| The launch of the Globemaster at Mack Sennett Studios on March 1 in Los Angeles. (Photo by Stefanie Keenan/Getty Images for Omega)” |
He added that he finds red carpets the most challenging environment when trying to decide what to wear.
“It's just a very odd thing to have to stand in front of banks of people screaming at you and telling you to look in their direction and quite often shouting abuse,” he said. “So for me, a good tailored suit and a strong watch give you a sense that you have armor or a uniform.”
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| Omega brand ambassador Eddie Redmayne, with his wife, Hannah Bagshawe |
Earlier in the day, Stephen Urquhart, Omega president, said the 34-year-old actor fits the positioning of the Globemaster well because of his youth, his reputation for taking on challenging roles and his unique sense of style. The timepiece is being sold as a traditional watch for a younger audience and Redmayne, who is the first Oscar winner born in the 1980s, fits this demographic.
“This watch is so important for the future of the brand that we wanted to find someone who could really try to combine the incredible legacy with a modern style,” he said. “I think at Omega we’re trying to definitely attract a younger generation.”
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| Jean-Claude Monachon, Omega vice president of Product Development and Customer Service demonstrates the Omega Globemaster watch for Omega brand ambassador Eddie Redmayne at Mack Sennett Studios on March 1, 2016 in Los Angeles. |
Urquhart describes Redmayne, known for embracing fine tailoring and well made shoes, as a “bit cutting edge” in his style. “He’s not the classic so called good looking guy.”
He describes the Globemaster as a contemporary watch that speaks to the history of Omega. It is part of Omega’s iconic Constellation series of watches and was styled after two Constellation watches in the 1950s, which at the time were called “Globemaster,” because the Constellation name was under trademark in the U.S., which expired in the early 1960s.
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| Omega used the occasion to introduce its first update of the Globemaster , a 41mm version with an annual calendar. Each month is positioned between the blued indexes. The months are indicated by a varnished blue hand. |
Jean-Claude Monachon, Omega vice president of Product Development and Customer Service, says the Globemaster takes its style cues from two Globemaster/Constellation watches at that time, in particular, its “pie-pan” dial style, fluted bezel, “double-C” case construction.
The Globemaster’s sapphire 39mm caseback is stamped with a medallion that has an image of an observatory, representing the precision awards that the watchmaker received during the famous chronometer observatory trials. Eight stars in the sky above the observatory symbolizes the watch brand’s most important precision records throughout its history. It also signifies the eight METAS-certified criteria that a timepiece and its movement must undergo in order to receive its Master Chronometer status. It’s the only watch in the world that has met these criteria, which measures the following:
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| Omega Globemaster in the watch Sedna gold, the watch brand's own patented rose gold alloy |
* Average daily precision of the watch when tested in six positions, two alternating temperatures and then exposed to magnetism of 15,000 gauss.
* Function of COSC-approved movement during exposure of 15,000 gauss magnetic field, the equivalent of what an MRI machine produces. “Doctors can now wear their watch at work,” Monachon said.
* Function of the entire watch during exposure of 15,000 gauss.
* Deviation of daily time precision after exposure to 15,000 gauss
* Water resistance testing
* Power reserve deviation testing
* Power reserve deviation testing between 100% and 33% with the watch in six positions
* Deviation of running time when tested in six positions
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| The Globemaster’s sapphire 39mm caseback showing the medallion stamped with an image of an observatory and eight stars in the sky above. |
Urquhart says the METAS-certified criteria extend the life of the watch.
“Everything has a short lifespan,” he said. “The dream is to have a mechanical watch on your wrist that is not eternal but has the longest lifespan as possible. I think the Globemaster does this with all we put into it style-wise and also with the mechanics and technology.”
He continues to examine ways of extending a watch’s life even further—including creating mechanicals movements that don’t need oil. The lubricant damages a watch over time.
“You have this on your wrist and it would age, but in such a fantastic way that it won’t deteriorate. That’s a good way to dream.”
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