Watch Paparazzi

Actor James Spader spotted wearing Rolex

On NBC's long-running thriller The Blacklist, costume detail is character biography. Raymond 'Red' Reddington — the chameleonic, panama-hatted fugitive played by James Spader — is never without a watch, and the prop department's choice speaks volumes: a Rolex GMT-Master II reference 16710 fitted on a five-link Jubilee bracelet, the so-called 'Pepsi' configuration with its iconic red-and-blue bidirectional bezel insert.

The reference 16710 was produced from 1989 to 2007 and represents the final generation of GMT-Master II to use the calibre 3185 movement — a 28,800 vph automatic with GMT complication, quick-set date, and independent 24-hour hand. The case measures 40mm in Oyster steel, and this particular example wears the fat-font 'Pepsi' aluminum bezel insert that collectors prize over later ceramic iterations for its warm, analogue aesthetic. The Jubilee bracelet pairing — a five-piece link design originally introduced on the Datejust in 1945 — was an understated factory option that dramatically elevates the 16710's formality without compromising wearability.

Among collectors, the 16710 'Pepsi' on Jubilee occupies a specific and coveted niche. Rolex retired aluminum bezels entirely with the introduction of the reference 116710BLNR in 2013, and the Jubilee strap was not reintroduced to the GMT line until the landmark 2018 Baselworld release. That gap created enormous retrospective desire for the 16710 configuration, pushing grey-market prices well above original retail levels despite the watch's relative modernity.

For Red Reddington, the watch is pitch-perfect costuming. A man who navigates multiple time zones, operates under aliases across continents, and cultivates the image of a pre-digital-era gentleman of leisure would logically gravitate toward a GMT complication. The Jubilee bracelet adds the crucial note of refinement — this is not a diver's tool watch slapped on a suit; it is a deliberate, considered choice, exactly as Reddington himself would make it.

On the secondary market, a clean 16710 'Pepsi' with Jubilee bracelet and full set of papers commands significant premiums. Examples in collector-grade condition regularly transact between $12,000 and $16,000 depending on service history, bracelet stretch, and bezel condition — making it both accessible and appreciating, a combination that defines the sweet spot of the modern Rolex secondary market.