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film directorSpotted June 2023

Film director Spike Lee spotted wearing a Jaeger LeCoultre

film director Spike Lee spotted wearing a Jaeger LeCoultre
Who & what: Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Gran Sport Steel – Spike Lee Spotted On Set

On a sun-drenched outdoor location that looks very much like a New York City basketball court — natural habitat for a Brooklyn native — Spike Lee was photographed wearing a Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso Gran Sport on his left wrist. The director, instantly recognizable in his signature round tortoiseshell frames and a '40 Acres' cap, kept his wardrobe relaxed but his wrist anything but ordinary.

The Reverso Gran Sport, introduced in the early 2000s as part of JLC's effort to bring the Art Deco swivel-case icon into a more athletic context, features the immediately recognizable rectangular case with its flippable carrure — here appearing to show the primary dial side. The case measures approximately 29 x 46mm in its larger Sport configuration, crafted in stainless steel, with the characteristic beveled lugs and a somewhat thicker profile than the classic Reverso Classique. The dial on the Gran Sport typically presents a clean three-hand layout with subsidiary seconds, housing the in-house Caliber 693 automatic movement — a far cry from the manual-wind origins of the original 1931 design but very much in keeping with daily wearability.

From a collector's perspective, the Reverso Gran Sport occupies an interesting middle ground. Purists tend to gravitate toward the thinner, manual-wind Classique or the ultra-complicated Reverso Tribute Tourbillon, but the Gran Sport has earned quiet respect as the most wearable daily expression of the swivel-case concept. Its automatic movement and slightly sportier proportions make it approachable without sacrificing the core Reverso DNA.

Spike Lee is a known watch enthusiast whose collection reportedly spans Richard Mille, Rolex, and high horology from the Swiss independents. His choice of the Reverso Gran Sport — a piece that rewards those who know their JLC history without announcing itself loudly — fits the profile of a collector who buys what he likes rather than what photographs well on Instagram.

On the secondary market, pre-owned Reverso Gran Sport references in steel trade comfortably in the $4,000–$7,000 range depending on condition and box-and-papers status, making this one of the more accessible entries into genuine Swiss manufacture horology from a prestige maison. Retail when current was positioned in the $8,000–$10,000 corridor.

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