American Psycho (1991)

This is the 1991 novel. For the 2000 film, see American Psycho (2000).

Bret Easton Ellis's satire follows Wall Street banker Patrick Bateman through a world of status rituals, conspicuous consumption, and violence. Watches are part of that inventory: the novel repeatedly names Bateman's gold Rolex without supplying a model and also mentions watches by H. Stern and TAG Heuer. (Goodreads)

Watches

Rolex (unidentified model): The novel never names a model: Rolex is mentioned 26 times, and the only descriptor Ellis ever attaches to it is "gold," including after Bateman's original watch is stolen at gunpoint and replaced with what he calls "my new gold Rolex that insurance paid for." Bateman narrates, rather than says aloud, that he warns his companions not to touch the Rolex, which he has kept on. The Datejust identification belongs to the film adaptation and the collector market, not the text: the film dresses a Seiko 5 SNXJ90 as a Rolex Datejust for its murder scenes, and collectors separately nickname a genuine two-tone Datejust 16013 the "American Psycho Rolex," though no source resolves which scenes, if any, show it distinct from the dressed Seiko.

H. Stern (unidentified model): Bateman describes wearing "a fourteen-karat gold watch from H.Stern" in place of his Rolex. The text names the maker and the metal and stops there, which is more than it ever gives the Rolex itself. (Timemongers)

TAG Heuer (unidentified model): Packing for a weekend, Bateman lists a "Tag-Heuer sports watch" among his luggage. No model, reference, or further description follows. The novel postdates the 1985 rename, so TAG Heuer is the period-correct name. (Timemongers)

Source text: ...warn them not to touch the Rolex, which I've kept on. (Bret Easton Ellis, American Psycho, Vintage Contemporaries, 1991)