Actor Jean Reno spotted wearing a IWC

Jean Reno's wrist made a notable cameo in the 2012 French culinary comedy 'Comme un chef,' where the actor — playing celebrated chef Alexandre Lagarde — can be spotted wearing an IWC Portugieser Automatique reference IW500704. Whether a personal piece brought to set or a deliberate wardrobe choice, it suits the character's old-world authority without a hint of ostentation.

The IW500704 is a stainless steel expression of the Portugieser Automatique measuring 42.3mm in diameter, fitted with a silver-toned dial bearing applied Arabic numerals and a subsidiary seconds register at the 6 o'clock position. Its architectural proportions — slim bezel, long lugs, clean dial geometry — trace directly back to the original 1939 Portugieser, a watch IWC produced for two Portuguese retailers who requested a wristwatch accurate enough to set marine chronometers. The ref. IW500704 is powered by the in-house Calibre 51011, a high-precision automatic movement beating at 28,800 vph with a 7-day power reserve and a stop-seconds mechanism, delivering chronometer-grade timekeeping in a package that wears with understated elegance.

Among collectors, the 5000-series Portugieser movements carry serious respect. Developed from a pocket-watch base, the Calibre 5000 family achieves a power reserve and accuracy that many smaller movements simply cannot match. The IW500704 occupies a sweet spot in the Portugieser range — large enough to command presence, restrained enough to avoid exhibitionism, and backed by genuine mechanical substance beneath the dial.

Reno has long cultivated a screen persona built on controlled intensity rather than flash, and the Portugieser Automatique aligns with that aesthetic perfectly. The watch requires no explanation and makes no concessions to trend — qualities that translate well both on screen and off.

On the market, the IW500704 has been discontinued and replaced by subsequent Portugieser iterations, pushing grey-market demand for clean examples steadily upward. Retail pricing during its production run sat in the mid-five-figure range for stainless steel references, and pre-owned examples in good condition command a premium among IWC enthusiasts who prize the 51011 calibre's architecture over more recent offerings.