Already shaping up to be one of the hottest shows that HBO has put out this year – a tall order when one considers the competition has included such IP as House of the Dragon and Euphoria – lauded comedy-drama (or is that comedy-horror?) anthology The White Lotus has proven to be compelling viewing for a whole boatload of reasons. Not least of which? Its rampant deployment of luxury watches.
It’s a testament to the tautness of series creator Mike White’s script and the impressive work of his entire cast that I didn’t even begin to clock all of the (conspicuously dangled) wrist candy until mid-way through this season. But trust us: much like the unnerving gaze of the Testa di Moro – another object loaded with ominous symbolism which recurs throughout this season – once you start seeing the horological heat the titular ‘White Lotus’ Sicily guests are packing, it’s difficult not to ponder what possible sub-textual meaning each timepiece might convey.
To sweeten the dead pool many of you surely have going into tonight’s finale, here are a handful of our favourite (and more obvious) luxury watch cameos from The White Lotus, season 2.
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Dominic di Grasso’s Panerai Submersible
Played by legendary Sopranos actor Michael Imperioli, Dominic di Grasso is a man who (much like his watch) is terribly at odds with himself. The middle-aged dad in the di Grasso family trio sports a Panerai Submersible QuarantaQuattro OroCarbo ($46,500) for most of his on-screen appearances – an iconic style of diver’s watch which, in decades past, would have been held aloft as the epitome of masculinity.
Configured here with a burly 44mm case made using GoldTech (Panerai’s proprietary gold material incorporating copper alloy) this dive watch in uber-luxurious metal is, practically speaking, an utter paradox: mirroring Dominic’s constant struggle to reign in his id – an essential theme for his character arc this season.
Cameron Sullivan’s Rolex Submariner ‘Smurf’
To absolutely nobody’s surprise (even those who likely consider themselves watch-ambivalent), Theo James’ character of Cameron Sullivan spends most of this season with – drum roll please – a Rolex Submariner strapped firmly to his wrist.
The White Lotus Sicily’s most boorish house guest can be seen on a number of conspicuously extended occasions wearing a Submariner Ref. 116619LB – better known to collectors by its unimaginative sobriquet ‘the Smurf’ (on account of its lustrous blue dial and Cerachrom insert bezel).
Discontinued in 2020 and now with a street value in excess of $60,000 – if market price aggregators are to be believed – saddling Cameron with a rare Submariner is an inspired bit of character building from White Lotus costume designer, Alex Bovaird. Sure, the watch commands formidable prices and is extremely eye-catching – especially in the Smurf’s rare shade of 1000-gigawatt blue – but for those who are assiduous on detail, it’s well-known that (much like all Submariners) this reference is historically prime territory for counterfeiters. Coincidence? We think not.
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Daphne Sullivan’s Tank Louis Cartier
Much like her philandering on-screen spouse, Daphne Sullivan (played by Meghann Fahy as a sort of quasi-Stepford Wives archetype) favours wristwear that cultivates a highly specific (and possibly affected) image of privilege. Her Tank Louis Cartier ($14,500) is just one in an endless sea of branded luxury goods worn over the course of the season, but – as with all clever bits of costuming – reveals something about her character, even as the show’s various twists and turns unfold.
Among White Lotus viewers, it’s already suspected that Daphne is a savvy operator with her own nefarious agenda; and, without wishing to give too much away, a shape watch like the Tank Louis Cartier fits in neatly with such characterisation. Expensive, uncontroversial, and conventionally attractive, it’s as much a smokescreen as the agreeable persona she lays on around the other guests. Maybe that’s precisely the point.
Ethan Spiller’s TAG Heuer Connected
In one of season 2’s more straightforward character metaphors, newly-minted billionaire Ethan Spiller (played by Giri/Haji actor Will Sharpe) opts to embark on the world’s worst Sicilian odyssey wearing a TAG Heuer Connected E4 ($2,600). The best-selling smartwatch, from the makers of the Monaco and Carrera, is a no-brainer for the tech mogul: a man who spends most mornings on vacation out jogging – in a vain attempt to sublimate the romantic and sexual frustrations of his marriage to Harper (played by Aubrey Plaza).
As a relatively new entrant to the ‘1% Club’, the Connected hints both at Ethan’s ties to the tech industry and his discomfort with gratuitous displays of material wealth. So, pretty much the antithesis of Tanya McQuoid then.
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Quentin’s Rolex Datejust
For the shadowy British expat known simply as ‘Quentin’ (played to deliciously camp effect by Tom Hollander) the White Lotus costume department chose an appropriately desirable, yet wholly unimaginative luxury watch – the Rolex Datejust.
Going into this week’s finale, there are a number of credible theories surrounding Quentin’s identity and his unlikely connection to one of the show’s AWOL secondary players. Pretty much all of these raise questions about the source (and indeed legitimacy) of his hedonistic, Byronesque lifestyle. Along with his estate, yacht and coterie of dubious Eurotrash types – one of whom is wearing a Bulgari Octo Finissimo! – Quentin’s choice of watch is another piece of the puzzle – one that might paint a deadly picture once viewers finally put all the pieces together.
Seen on Quentin numerous times throughout the latter half of the season, our best guess is that this is the Ref. 126300 version of the iconic Datejust ($11,100): measuring 41mm in diameter, with a flat bezel; white dial; and baton-shape indexes. Much as with Cameron’s choice in rare white gold Submariners; this Datejust 41 is precisely the sort of watch you’d expect to see on the person of a shady, yacht-going villa owner.
