The American Psycho watch
Bret Easton Ellis’ creation, as portrayed on screen by Christian Bale, wore a Rolex Datejust 16013 with jubilee bracelet.
Rolex introduced the Datejust collection in 1946 but this stainless steel and gold combination with a gold fluted bezel came out in the very early Eighties and is perhaps the perfect watch to wear when portraying a financier from that time.
Rolex was mentioned 26 times in the book, both in reference to his own watch and that of others, although no specific model was quoted. At one point in the book he says, “instead of my Rolex I’m wearing a fourteen-karat gold watch from H.Stern” and makes reference to packing a weekend bag that includes a “Tag-Heuer sports watch” but it’s Rolex that he and his co-workers mostly wear.
When it came to making this film, however, Rolex didn’t want to be associated with a psycho, so one of the famous lines from the book, “Don’t touch the Rolex”, had to be changed to “Don’t touch the watch”.
Other brands mentioned in the book also had issues. Cerruti agreed to allow Christian Bale to wear their clothes, but not when the character was killing anyone. Perry Ellis provided underwear at the last minute after Calvin Klein pulled out of the project and Comme des Garçons refused to allow one of their overnight bags to be used to carry a corpse, so Jean Paul Gaultier was used instead.
The watch, however, has become a classic and sought after partly because it was the one worn in this film. Prices vary depending on condition but you can expect to pay around $3,500 for a vintage Rolex like this.
