Cannes, France – 17 May 2015


It was only legitimate and natural for TAG Heuer to be present at the side of Chad McQueen, son of Steve McQueen, and the whole team behind “Steve McQueen: The Man & Le Mans” for the film’s grand premiere screening on the famed Croisette in Cannes.

As the documentary traces Steve McQueen’s passion for automotive racing with images from his now legendary movie ‘Le Mans’ and unpublished archive footage made available by his son Chad, we rediscover Steve McQueen in his Heuer racing jumpsuit and on his wrist the famous Monaco, the square-shaped automatic chronograph that had just been launched back then and has since become an icon of the brand.


As the story goes, when filming began in 1970, Steve McQueen insisted on wearing the same racing jumpsuit as racecar champion Jo Siffert, a friend of Jack Heuer who at the time was consulting on the movie. At the time, Jo Siffert was the Ambassador of the Heuer watch company. This kind of endorsement was a new concept in the industry then – an inkling of the ‘Avant-Garde’ in the logo of today’s TAG Heuer.

Chad McQueen, who nine years ago survived a racing accident on the Daytona Speedway, said when the lights went on after the premiere screening:“The film is authentic. It really captured the essence of what my father was trying to achieve with the Le Mans movie. I want to thank the two Directors Gabriele Clarke and John McKenna for doing such a great job”.


The screening was followed by a special evening event whose numerous guests included the two race drivers Mark Webber and Mitch Evans who will be at the start line at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in three weeks.

Chad McQueen of course wore the original TAG Heuer Monaco seen in the film, while a 2015 Monaco gleamed under glass at the heart of the evening event – a testament to the fact that icons by definition stand the test of time.