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Actor Gaspard Ulliel spotted wearing Chanel

Gaspard Ulliel, the late French actor celebrated for his roles in 'A Very Long Engagement,' 'Saint Laurent,' and Marvel's 'Moon Knight,' was photographed wearing a Chanel Monsieur de Chanel on his wrist — a watch that sits at the intersection of haute horlogerie ambition and Chanel's rigorous aesthetic codes. The sighting is particularly resonant given Ulliel's decade-long ambassadorial relationship with the house, making his choice of the Monsieur de Chanel feel less like product placement and more like genuine personal expression.

The Monsieur de Chanel, introduced in 2016, marked a watershed moment for Chanel Horlogerie: the brand's first men's watch powered by a fully proprietary movement. The Calibre 1 Heure Sautante is a manually wound movement — a deliberate choice that signals craft over convenience — featuring a retrograde minute hand that sweeps a 240-degree arc along the dial's periphery before snapping back to zero, and a jumping hour displayed in a bold square aperture at 6 o'clock. The movement runs at 21,600 vph with a 55-hour power reserve and was developed with the Chanel-owned movement manufacturer F.P. Journe's former atelier partner, though Chanel now credits production entirely in-house.

From the close-up image, the dial presents in Chanel's signature beige gold case with a matte sand-colored dial, square-tipped applied indices, and a sub-seconds register at approximately 4 o'clock — consistent with the Beige Gold references in the Monsieur de Chanel lineup. The peripheral minute track running from 5 through 55 in bold numerals is immediately recognizable. The strap appears to be black alligator with a deployant clasp. These details align most closely with reference H6596, the 40mm beige gold edition.

Among collectors, the Monsieur de Chanel occupies a curious but respected niche. It challenges the assumption that luxury fashion houses cannot produce serious mechanical complications, and the jumping hour with retrograde minutes remains an intellectually engaging combination rarely executed with such clean minimalism. Secondary market activity has been limited by relatively low production volumes, which supports stable pricing.

Ulliel's affinity for Chanel extended well beyond professional obligation. His wearing of the Monsieur de Chanel underscores the watch's quiet confidence — a piece that rewards those who notice it, never demanding attention it hasn't earned.