I Wore Daniel Craig’s Brand-New, Top-Secret Omega Seamaster

What does it take to be a world-famous superspy? Using fancy gadgets to save the world? Debonair good looks and expertly tailored tuxedos? How about wearing top-secret Omega watches? If it’s just the last one, then I’m well on my way to becoming the next James Bond.

Earlier this summer, former 007 Daniel Craig sat in the stands at the Paris Olympics sporting a never-before-seen Omega. Eagle-eyed watch enthusiasts determined that Craig was wearing an unreleased Seamaster 300M that shared DNA with the various 007 editions of the model that have dropped over the years. I’ve spent the last few weeks on my own secret mission: testing out that very same watch, one of two new Seamaster 300Ms that Omega is releasing today.

The new Seamaster 300M nicely blends the modern version of the watch with the vintage-tinged 007 versions. The watch steals many of the best elements from the latter and incorporates them into the standard-production pieces. Like the 007 editions, the updated Seamasters have a mesh bracelet, a clean dial that excises the date window, and an elegantly domed sapphire crystal. The new watches also trade out the Seamaster’s standard ceramic bezel: The black-dial makeup worn by Craig features a bezel made from aluminum, while the sleek gray spin boasts a titanium bezel, just like the watch Bond donned in 2021’s No Time to Die.

Omega’s two biggest pop-cultural links are to NASA and Bond, who’s been wearing the brand’s pieces since 1995’s GoldenEye. While NASA informs the best-selling Moonwatch and is still inspiring new references, like the excellent“First Omega in Space” Speedmaster that just came out in October, 007 watches are typically reserved for special editions. With this new Seamaster, Omega is letting their relationship to Bond infuse into the broader line, like an herb popped into a stew. Unlike the 007 Seamasters, which were replicas of the watches worn by Craig in the films, wearing this watch didn’t feel like walking around in high-priced movie memorabilia (not that there’s anything wrong with that!). Instead, Omega test-drove elements for this pair of new watches in special 007 editions before pulling them into these standard releases. You get Bond-tested suaveness without having to pledge allegiance to MI6.

The new Seamaster on my wrist

And even though Craig has moved onto steamy Luca Guadagnino movies, Omega is still effectively acting as his Q and sending him out into the world with special mechanical goodies. It’s become the brand’s go-to playbook for new launches: Craig is spotted in an unreleased watch, and then a few months later Omega officially announces it. This began last November, when the brand strapped a white-dial Omega Speedmaster on Craig’s wrist before eventually releasing it in March. And following August’s aforementioned Seamaster-at-the-Olympics incident, Craig turned up again just this week in a gold Seamaster Diver 300 with a burgundy dial, a watch likely to release in a few months’ time.

With this particular Seamaster 300M release, I’d argue Omega kept one in the chamber when giving Craig early access. While the black-dial reference will now get the Craig co-sign, it’s the slate gray titanium piece that really looks like superspy gear. The brushed PVD steel dial is distinctive in the Seamaster lineup, which typically features the laser-engraved waves seen on the black-dial version.

Still, the new Craig Seamaster fills a conspicuous hole in Omega’s catalog. As several folks noted when this watch first surfaced, diehard fans of the brand have been pining for a no-date Seamaster that could rival Rolex’s no-date Submariner. Omega is doing the horological equivalent of playing “Freebird” with this piece. The question is how much Omega will draw from its traditional piece versus the Bond-inspired one going forward. Over my time with the watch, my one qualm was with the mesh bracelet which occasionally pinched my wrist. I wonder how this watch would look if you traded out the punchy mesh for the standard Seamaster 300M bracelet.

The new Seamaster is something I can hardly believe wasn’t already in Omega’s catalog. Like the white-dial Speedy, it’s a piece that slots into the lineup as an instant classic. A dive watch with some tips and tricks informed by James Bond? That’s a bullseye.