This is the Casio Vintage A100 series watch – it’s a modern reissue of the legendary Casio F-100 watch that was worn by Officer Ellen Ripley, played by Sigourney Weaver, in the original Alien film released in 1979.
In actual fact, Ripley wore two Casio F-100s in the film. Both were attached together top-to-tail and worn on the same strap, the prop department added a red plastic backing plate to make them like a single watch. Casio had introduced the F-100 in 1977 as their first ever plastic bodied watch, a material that would take the (cheap) watchmaking industry by storm in the years to follow.
Here are two shots of Ripley in Alien, you can see the double Casio F-100 on her wrist. It was put together like this by the prop department to make it look more futuristic. Images courtesy of 20th Century Fox.
The F-100 was replaced with a newer model in 1979, the same year Alien was released, which perhaps wasn’t a great move by the Casio product planning department, as demand for the watch soared due to its use in the film. Even today there is significant demand for good quality original Casio F-100s, though they’re thin on the ground.
The Casio Vintage A100 has a design closely based on its forebear though it does now have a stainless steel case rather than the original black plastic. It gives the watch a little more weight and a higher quality feel, and it does come with optional black or gold colorways if a brushed stainless steel finish isn’t your thing.
Much like the original, the A100 has an LCD display and it has a calendar function as well as a day-date display, a stop watch, an alarm, and a light for nighttime use. It weighs 55 grams and it’s water resistant down to 30 meters or 3 bar.
Above Video: This is the original theatrical trailer for Ridley Scott’s “Alien” from 1979. It’s been hailed as one of the best trailers of all time as it doesn’t give away a single plot point or surprise, and it leaves the viewer with a sense of general foreboding.
Although it seems like an obvious idea, Casio hasn’t offered a double version of the A100 in black to match the one Ripley wore in Alien, so it’ll be up to you to create your own if you want one.
Images courtesy of Casio + 20th Century Fox
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