Sebastian Stan Embodies the Sporty Elegance of Santos de Cartier

If you had to put sporty elegance on a wrist, it would probably look a lot like Sebastian Stan in a Santos de Cartier.

Square case, exposed screws, clean Roman numerals.A watch that feels just as right with a sharp tux on the red carpet as it does slipped a little loose with a T-shirt on a Sunday.

In Cartier’s latest campaigns, the Marvel alum doesn’t just wear the Santos – he feels like it: cinematic, precise, a little bit rebellious, and quietly timeless.

From aviation daredevil to modern icon

Long before it became a red-carpet favourite, the Santos de Cartier started life as a tool for a friend.

In 1904, Louis Cartier designed the watch for aviation pioneer Alberto Santos-Dumont, who wanted to check the time mid-flight without fumbling for a pocket watch. The solution was radical for its era: a wrist-worn watch with a bold, square bezel, exposed screws and a sapphire-set crown, breaking away from the rounded pocket-watch shapes of the time.

That mix of industrial lines and refined detailing is what still defines the Santos today. Over a century on, Cartier has pushed the design into new materials and proportions – including the latest titanium case with white dial and steel model with a deep black dial and Super-LumiNova hands, both of which Stan now wears in the campaign.

The DNA hasn’t changed. The attitude has evolved.

Sporty elegance, in Cartier language

The Santos has always lived in that sweet spot between dress watch and sports watch. On paper, it’s elegant:

• Refined Roman numerals and railway track minute markers

• A slim, architectural profile

• Signature square case and visible screws that signal Cartier from across the room

But the details push it into sportier territory:

• Integrated bracelet that feels robust and modern

• Strong geometry that can stand up to denim, leather and knitwear

• Now, with the titanium model and the black-dial steel version, a more masculine, technical energy – lighter, tougher, with a dash of tool-watch attitude.

It’s that balance – part heritage, part hardware – that makes the watch feel like a character, not just an accessory. And that’s exactly why Sebastian Stan makes so much sense on the other side of the lens.

Why Sebastian Stan is the perfect Santos man

Sebastian Stan has built a career on transformation.From Bucky Barnes in the Marvel universe to his Golden Globe-winning turn in A Different Man, via I, Tonya, Pam & Tommy and The Apprentice, he gravitates towards roles that carry history, myth and a touch of controversy.

That fascination with the past isn’t just about scripts; it’s about style.

In interviews provided through Cartier, Stan talks about growing up obsessed with classic Hollywood films from the 1940s and 1950s, and noticing a recurring detail on the wrists of the actors he admired: Cartier watches. For him, the brand represents a kind of effortless, timeless elegance that never feels out of place, whether on an old black-and-white reel or in a modern paparazzi shot.

So when he wears the Santos – slightly loose, letting it move on his wrist – it doesn’t read as product placement. It looks like an extension of the way he already sees himself: someone with one foot in Old Hollywood and the other firmly in the present.

The way he wears it: relaxed, precise, never trying too hard

What makes the campaign images so compelling is how unforced they feel.

In steel or titanium, on bracelet, the Santos sits on Stan’s wrist like it’s been there for years. In portraits for Cartier, Tatler Asia and Esquire Singapore, he pairs it with everything from a sharp suit to more relaxed looks, letting the watch do what it does best: tie the whole frame together without shouting for attention.

He’s said that a watch, for him, has to be more than a timekeeper – it’s a way to disconnect from the phone, anchor himself in the moment, and say something about who he is. The Santos, with its square case and exposed screws, has that unmistakable “presence” he’s looking for, but it still feels easy – the kind of piece you forget you’re wearing until someone notices it.

That’s sporty elegance in 2025:

• Not a dive bezel and neon rubber strap

• But a watch that can handle life – travel, set days, premieres – while still looking perfectly at home peeking from under a cuff on stage at the Golden Globes.

  
  

Titanium, black dials and a modern kind of masculinity

The two newest Santos models that Stan is fronting tell you a lot about where Cartier wants to take this line.

• Santos Titanium – matte, bead-blasted, 43% lighter and 1.5 times harder than steel, with a dark crown that leans into the watch’s industrial DNA.

• Santos Black Dial – the large steel version with a half-satin, half-sunburst dial and Super-LumiNova hands that glow with a sporty, almost stealth vibe.

Stan has described both pieces as having a “strong, masculine energy”, while still staying true to Cartier’s softer codes – clean lines, elegant proportions, and that unmistakable square silhouette.

On his wrist, they read less like a macho flex and more like modern armour: technical enough to feel current, restrained enough to feel truly luxurious.

Time, patience and an actor who understands both

Underneath the styling and the campaign shots, there’s a quieter theme that links Stan and the Santos: time as a craft.

In several interviews around the campaign, he talks about how time has shaped his career –waiting for the right roles, enduring the uncertainty between projects, learning to be patient with the process instead of chasing instant gratification. The watch on his wrist becomes a daily reminder of that philosophy: you can’t control time, but you can decide how present you are in it.

The Santos de Cartier was born out of a similar mindset: a practical solution for a pilot that ended up redefining what a men’s watch could look like for over a century. It’s a piece about movement, courage and precision, rather than screaming for attention.

Put it on someone like Sebastian Stan – a man who lives between past and present, between superhero and character actor – and the story writes itself.

He doesn’t just model the watch.He embodies its version of sporty elegance: sharp but relaxed, cinematic but grounded, instantly classic without ever feeling stuck in time.