Apocalypse Now Watches: Willard’s Seiko 6105 and Kurtz’s Rolex GMT-Master

Apocalypse Now (1979) is often remembered for the wrong watch. Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam War film has two watches that collectors care about, and they sit on opposite sides of the river: Captain Willard wears a Seiko diver, while Colonel Kurtz wears a Rolex GMT-Master. This guide separates the two, explains how well each identification is documented, and gives the contested auction history of the Rolex.

Who wears what: quick reference

Captain Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen)

Willard’s watch is a working diver, the kind that was popular with US Marines in Vietnam and sold at Army PX stores for about $75–$95 at the time. It is visible in the opening scene, around 00:07, in his Saigon hotel bedroom in dim lamplight. Collectors call the model the “Captain Willard”, but that is a fan nickname, not a Seiko licensing deal. HODINKEE Japan reports that Seiko markets the reissue through explorer Naomi Uemura instead.

The vintage 6105 was not military issue. Its case is 44mm, about 13mm thick, with a 6105B hacking movement, and it was made from 1970 to 1977. In Japan it is nicknamed “Uemura” after the explorer.

Colonel Walter E. Kurtz (Marlon Brando)

Kurtz’s Rolex is the more famous watch and the better documented one. It is visible near the end of the film, around 02:25:59, as Kurtz washes his face while talking to Willard. It was not a costume pick. Brando reportedly arrived wearing his own GMT-Master and kept it on, saying, per The Peak, that if people were looking at his watch he was not doing his job as an actor. The compromise was removing the bezel.

Phillips says Brando wore the watch on set and reportedly engraved “M. Brando” on the caseback. He gave it to his daughter Petra in 1995, and in 2003 she gave it to her husband Russel, who never wore it. Proceeds partly supported the Brando Fischer Foundation. Becker Time adds that the original bezel was the red and blue “Pepsi” type and the bracelet was swapped for rubber, but it is a single secondary source, so treat “Pepsi” as REPORTED. HODINKEE Japan says the dial was refinished from gloss to a matte service dial. For context on the reference, see our Rolex GMT-Master history.

Everyone else: Kilgore, Chef, Lance, Mr. Clean, Chief Phillips and the rest (Robert Duvall, Frederic Forrest, Sam Bottoms, Laurence Fishburne, Albert Hall and others)

We found no watch identified for Kilgore, Chef, Mr. Clean, Chief Phillips, the photojournalist, General Corman, Colonel Lucas or Captain Colby. The only trace is a continuity detail: a mistakes site says that in the burial scene, around 02:01:10, Lance’s wristwatch reads 11:45 and about 20 seconds later a close-up of Chief Phillips’s watch reads 4:10. No brand or model is given, and we did not verify the site’s further claim about a stand-in.

Two watches, one correction

Neither watch is a plot device. Both are wardrobe items seen briefly, Willard’s at about 00:07 and Kurtz’s at about 02:26. The one real watch story is off screen: Brando’s refusal to take his Rolex off. The two watches also say something about the characters. Willard’s is a cheap, tough diver sold at a PX, the kind a soldier buys. Kurtz’s is a Rolex, but a stripped one, with the colourful bezel gone.

On the costume credit: BAMF Style lists Charles E. James as costume supervisor, with no costume designer named. A German database labels him a designer, but we could not verify that page, so we use “costume supervisor.” For other film and series guides, see Watches in Films and James Bond Watches.

Get the look for less

Real-world watches that echo the two in the film, with indicative US prices. These are editorial suggestions, not watches from the film, and asking prices are undated.

Myths and mix-ups, corrected

• “Willard wears a Rolex GMT-Master.” No. Willard wears a Seiko 6105 diver. The Rolex GMT-Master 1675 is Colonel Kurtz’s, and it was Marlon Brando’s own watch.
• “The Rolex was chosen by the costume department.” Brando’s personal watch, per Phillips and The Peak. We found no costume or prop department statement about either watch.
• “The Rolex sold for $5 million.” Sources disagree. Bloomberg reported more than $5 million (CHF 4.3 million), IDEX reported $3.99 million, and HODINKEE Japan reported CHF 4.58 million against a CHF 1–2 million estimate. The difference may be hammer price versus fees, but sources do not say. The sale was then disputed and settled, and we did not verify final payment.
• “The buyer was a Dubai collector.” Fetched reports identify the Christie’s consignor, Mohammed Zaman, as Omani.
• “Seiko made the 6105 for the military.” It was not military issue. It was sold at Army PX stores.
• “Seiko licensed the ‘Captain Willard’ name.” It is a collector nickname. Seiko is unlikely to link to the film directly.
• “The film’s costume designer is Charles E. James.” BAMF Style lists him as costume supervisor, and no designer is named.

Sources

HODINKEE Japan (Danny Milton, November 2021; Cole Pennington, July 2020; Anthony Traina, December 2023), the Phillips lot page for the Rolex GMT-Master 1675, Phillips announcement coverage via JustCollecting, The Peak, Becker Time, BAMF Style, Analog:Shift, WatchProSite, Bloomberg via swissinfo, IDEX and Wikipedia. We could not reach IMWDB, Hodinkee English, Fratello or the Christie’s lot page. No costume or prop department statement was found. Prices are indicative US-dollar figures retrieved on October 11, 2026; used and vintage prices are undated asking prices, not sales.