Rich people must lead some truly fascinating lives. Oh, not because of how they got their money. That's almost invariably boring and depressing. No, it's their everyday lives of trying to find ways to spend all that money that truly inspires interest. Maybe they'll spend all their time tracking down rare Kingdom Hearts Funko Pops, or perhaps they'd rather casually drop $150,000 on an arguably obsolete piece of technology based on Star Wars.
Swiss watch makers Kross Studio have stepped up to the plate in that regard and designed a wristwatch inspired by the Death Star battle station from Star Wars. Authorized by Lucasfilm itself, this intricate piece of lavish machinery is almost as intimidating as the real thing, though definitely for different reasons. With an asking price of $150 grand, they'll be hard pressed to find someone whose wallet can withstand fire of that magnitude.
It's certainly a striking piece of equipment, with a design heavily reminiscent of the black and white motif seen during most interior shots on the Death Star. Meanwhile, the outside features a few accents in the sorts of Aurebesh characters seen on signs all throughout the Star Wars series. But what truly draws the eye is the wireframe Death Star set right in the center of the watch face. Like many collector's items, if it wasn't for the price, it might have been a solid investment.
Some may be wondering what about that design makes the watch so expensive. True, the materials and additions like titanium and tourbillon (look, everyone here can just pretend to know what it is and move on) drive up the price well enough, but here's the big catch. Each one purchased is shipped inside an actual kyber crystal prop used in the troubled production of Rogue One: A Star Wars Story. For this reason, only 10 of these watches have been manufactured.
It's thematically appropriate, given how kyber crystals are the power source for the Death Star's gargantuan planet-killing laser. But the sheer extravagance of this whole thing kind of leaves a bad taste. It's a beautiful watch, that much is certain, so the price of such a thing would be rather justifiably high even without the Star Wars movie prop carrying case. But even so, the manufactured scarcity that comes with only creating 10 of them seems like it's more about making headlines than making sales. (Yes, the irony is not lost here.)
Still, it's hard to deny that it might be interesting to see exactly who buys these pricey pieces of profligacy. At the moment, not a single one has been sold, so keep an eye out for any sneaky Rockefellers out there who feel like tossing up over double most people's yearly salary for a nifty little Star Wars time thingy. Or hey, maybe it would be easier to simply get hired as an actor and take some props home like Henry Cavill.
The Star Wars saga is now available on Disney Plus.
Source: The Hollywood Reporter