This profound friendship, spanning over a decade, continues to flourish today. Recently, Richard Mille unveiled a new campaign film, The Dazzling Division, flawlessly presenting the captivating allure of the latest RM HJ-02 Automatic Tourbillon High Jewellery watch. This visually striking film stars Academy Award-winning actress Michelle Yeoh. On screen, she appears with poised elegance, wearing her beloved RM07-02 Sapphire Crystal watch, exuding a bold and independent feminine spirit. Adding to the pleasant surprise, the campaign was personally directed by Guillaume Mille, son of the brand’s founder. As a professional director and the founder of the production company MilleDollars, he has previously helmed numerous highly artistic image films for Richard Mille.
[Celebrity Collector] Inside Michelle Yeoh’s Richard Mille Collection
Michelle Yeoh and Richard Mille’s Collaborative Masterpieces
A Magnificent Totem of Chinese Mythology: RM051 Phoenix-Jeweled Tourbillon
The first heavyweight masterpiece of their collaboration was the RM051 Phoenix-Jeweled Tourbillon, introduced in 2011. Yeoh understood that within the realm of high-end mechanical watches, tourbillon complications specifically designed for women were exceedingly rare. Therefore, she personally selected the “Phoenix” from Chinese mythology as the design motif, symbolizing women’s elegance, beauty, and power of rebirth. On the dial of the RM051, a phoenix meticulously sculpted from white gold and fully set with brilliant diamonds spreads its wings, its flowing lines enveloping the manual-winding tourbillon movement. Notably, the movement’s baseplate is crafted from extremely rare Black Onyx; this natural gemstone, known for its pure texture and deep, steady luster, establishes a profoundly mesmerizing visual effect for the entire skeletonized caliber.
Heroic Brothers: RM51-01 Tourbillon Tiger and Dragon
In 2014, to celebrate the release of Michelle Yeoh’s film Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny, the two parties joined forces again to launch the RM51-01 Tourbillon Tiger and Dragon. This watch miniaturizes the majestic imagery of the “Tiger and Dragon” from traditional Chinese culture within its confined space. The dragon and tiger on the dial are entirely hand-engraved from 18K red gold. Artisans had to use extremely fine burins to outline the three-dimensional depth of the dragon’s scales and the texture of the tiger’s fur within a narrow space of just a few millimeters, followed by meticulous micro-painting. This created a dramatic visual scene: a tiger and a dragon firmly grasping the tourbillon movement. Merging the legendary aura of the wuxia (martial arts) world with haute horlogerie techniques, this watch has become an extremely rare and highly collectible treasure on the secondary market.