Seiko Celebrates 50 Years of “Jaws” with the Prospex King Turtle SRPL81

Find me a more iconic thriller/horror movie… I’ll wait. The scene when the man-eating great white shark appears, the music (a masterpiece by John Williams), everything about this movie is cult. Yes, it feels a bit outdated nowadays and might not have the same impact that it had 50 years ago, but you simply can’t overlook Steven Spielberg’s mastery of tension in his movie JAWS. This year, marking the 50th anniversary of the release of this landmark movie, Seiko releases the Prospex JAWS 50th Anniversary SRPL81, a limited edition based on the well-known architecture of the King Turtle diver… Different animal, striking result. 

This Seiko x JAWS edition is unmistakably… JAWS-inspired. There’s no hiding it. The connection is rather obvious and pretty visible indeed. That being said, it does also feel like an evolution of recent PADI and Save the Ocean editions, at least in its colour scheme. Besides the movie theme, what are we looking at? In short, a new member of the King Turtle family. The evolution of the classic vintage-inspired Turtle watch, this King version retains most of the emblematic design attributes but adds robustness and modern features by using contemporary, higher-end materials.

The steel case is familiar, with its cushion shape (hence the Turtle nickname), made of brushed and polished stainless steel, with a crown at 4 o’clock, typical of Seiko Prospex watches. A rather large watch, with a 45mm diameter and 13.2mm thickness, it remains wrist-friendly with a contained lug-to-lug measurement of 47.7mm. Thanks to a screw-down crown and solid steel caseback, it benefits from a comfortable 200m water-resistance.

Like all other King Turtle watches, the Prospex JAWS 50th Anniversary SRPL81 features upgraded materials, starting with the replacement of the Hardlex crystal with a sapphire crystal, which includes a magnifier over the day-date window. The second evolution concerns the bezel, which now opts for a scratch-resistant ceramic insert with a lumed pearl. The bezel, as expected, is unidirectional and features its own square-like pattern on the side. For this edition, in order to match the maritime theme, the insert is in glossy dark blue.

Most of the theme comes down to the dial, with a bi-colour effect – gradient scheme switching from silver to blue – and a deeply embossed pattern inspired by the movie’s poster, created by American artist Roger Kastel. The pattern consists of ripping water and the emblematic shark escaping, jaws wide open, from the sea. The JAWS logo, equally embossed, is modelled after the movie’s font and picked up in red. The embossed hour markers and hands (both filled with LumiBrite), as well as the day-date window at 3 o’clock, are familiar ground for a King Turtle. Note the small but ISO 6425-compliant lumed marker next to the calendar aperture.

The JAWS theme continues on the back, with the movie’s fishing boat (Orca) and the shark’s dorsal fin. This closed caseback hides a well-known movement, the calibre 4R36, the brand’s entry-level automatic movement with a 3Hz frequency, a 41-hour power reserve, a quick-set day-date and hacking function. The watch comes equipped with a blue silicone strap, paired with a steel pin buckle.

The Seiko Prospex JAWS 50th Anniversary Limited Edition SRPL81 is delivered in a specially themed box with the Jaws 50th anniversary logo and a watch pillow printed with the movie poster. Available in 5,000 pieces from boutiquea and retailers in Japan, the United States, Australia, and Taiwan, the watch retails for USD 795 or AUD 1,200. For more details, please visit seikowatches.com.