Watches on the Screen—The Omega Timepieces of “First Man”

No doubt, by now most of you have heard of the upcoming film, First Man (directed by Damien Chazelle and Starring Ryan Gosling as astronaut Neil Armstrong). The biographical drama will chronicle the space race, specifically the years leading up to the fateful 1969 Apollo 11 mission to the moon, with the film culminating in what is rumored to be a mind-blowing moon landing sequence.

I won’t rehash Omega’s connection to the moon landing here. That story has been told time and time again. However, I will note that Chazelle was adamant on telling this story with authenticity, and that meant getting every detail—including the watches—just right.

According to Esquire, the production team coordinated with Omega to produce “more than 10 period-specific Speedys, in two different references” for Ryan Gosling and the rest of the Apollo 11 team (Corey Stoll will portray Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, and Lukas Haas will portray Michael Collins). “The reason for the two references is that the ST 105.003 (the very same model that NASA tested in 1964) and the ST 105.012 were both worn by Armstrong first in training and then for the actual Moon mission.”

Omega provided the film with four distinct models, some of them period-correct recreations you’ll only ever see in the film, and others pulled directly from Omega’s archives and loaned to the production.

Omega Speedmaster ST 105.003The 105.003 is worn by Gosling’s Armstrong during his Apollo training at NASA. In real life, it was the model that underwent rigorous NASA testing and was “Flight Qualified” in 1965. It was worn by Ed White (portrayed in the film by Jason Clarke) during the first American spacewalk on June 3, 1965.

Omega Speedmaster ST 105.012 “Moonwatch”This space-ready Speedmaster is worn by the Apollo 11 astronauts during their historic mission, and it will be worn on-screen by Gosling and the rest of the Apollo 11 crew. Gosling won’t wear the watch to the surface of the moon, however, as Neil Armstrong left his watch behind in the lunar module as a backup timer after one of the onboard timers malfunctioned. It was Aldrin who ultimately took the first Speedmaster to the lunar surface.

Omega CK 2605This is a timepiece from 1954 and will be worn on-screen by Ryan Gosling day-to-day.

Omega StopwatchThis ‘60s-era stopwatch is seen being used by NASA engineers during training sequences.

For more Speedmaster and “Moonwatch”-related content, check out the links below:

The Coolest (and Strangest) Omega Speedmasters From Japan

Photo Gallery: Omega Celebrates 60th Anniversary of the Speedmaster With a Spread of Historic References

Around the Web: Astronaut Donn Eisele’s Stolen Speedmaster Found After Nearly 30 Years Missing

Omega Speedmaster: Variations