Watch Paparazzi

Actor Jon Øigarden spotted wearing Rolex

Jon Øigarden was spotted on what appears to be the deck of a sailing yacht, dressed in a light technical jacket and cap — the kind of low-key, functional setting that suits the Rolex Explorer perfectly. The Norwegian actor, who has built a significant international profile through roles in high-profile European productions, keeps his wrist game equally understated: a steel-on-steel Rolex Explorer that disappears under a cuff but rewards the observer who looks twice.

The watch itself reads clearly as a Rolex Explorer ref. 114270, produced between 2001 and 2010. The 36mm Oyster case in 904L stainless steel, smooth bezel with no graduation, and the iconic black dial with Arabic numerals at 3, 6, and 9 complemented by baton indices are all consistent with this reference. The 114270 houses Rolex's calibre 3130 — a self-winding movement with a paramagnetic blue Parachrom hairspring and 48-hour power reserve, beating at 28,800 vph. At 36mm it sits smaller than most contemporary sports watches, which only adds to its appeal among serious collectors who value proportion and wearability over visual noise.

The Explorer ref. 114270 occupies a sweet spot in Rolex collector culture. It was the last 36mm Explorer before Rolex temporarily expanded the case to 39mm with the 214270 in 2010 — a move that divided the community. When Rolex returned to 36mm with the current 124270 in 2021, it validated what 114270 devotees had been saying for a decade. Original 114270 examples in good condition have consequently seen steady grey-market appreciation.

Øigarden's choice fits a broader pattern among European creative professionals who gravitate toward references that telegraph taste without performing wealth. The Explorer has always been the introvert's Rolex — no date, no complications, no coloured sub-dials — just a movement and a dial built to function at altitude or at a script read-through.

On the current grey market, clean 114270 examples trade between $9,000 and $13,000 depending on condition and box-and-papers status — meaningfully above original retail, and a trajectory unlikely to reverse given the reference's closure and the brand's renewed commitment to 36mm sizing.