Skip to main content

Over the years, Julie Chen Moonves has become a legendary television host. Her work on the hit CBS reality TV series Big Brother has stretched over two decades now. However, hosting has not always come naturally to her. Moonves recently revealed that she actually cringes when she watches old episodes of Big Brother.

Julie Chen Moonves on the set of 'Big Brother'
Host Julie Chen Moonves on the season premiere of ‘Big Brother’. | Cliff Lipson/CBS via Getty Images

Julie Chen Moonves has been the host of ‘Big Brother’ since 2000

Moonves was the anchor for CBS Morning News, and then became the host of Big Brother in 2000. She, however, received criticism from viewers early for not having much personality, which earned her the nickname, “Chenbot.”

“Season 1, I was terrible,” Moonves said on EW Live, according to Entertainment Weekly. “Let’s just say what everyone knows: I was the Chenbot. I deserved that name because I was robotic. I came from a news background and I was asked to do this show and I thought, ‘Okay, I’m going to be really straight, with no personality, because my original dream was one day to be a correspondent on 60 Minutes.”

Moonves, who is about to begin hosting the 22nd season of Big Brother, went on to say that she “learned how to embrace the Chenbot.”

“I think I strike the right balance between being Chenbot-y and like very, like, no personality,” Moonves said. “The stars of the show are the ones in the house. I’m just the conductor of this train. So sometimes letting my personality show.”

Julie Chen Moonves said that she cringes when she watches old episodes

In addition to hosting the show for 22 seasons, Moonves has also hosted one season of Big Brother: Over the Top, and two seasons of Celebrity Big Brother. With all the experience that she has now, Moonves actually cringes when she watches old episodes of the show.

“There are old shows I look at and old moments where I cringe, but the good news is I can kind of laugh about it now,” Moonves said, according to Entertainment Weekly. “You know, we all make mistakes and we all grow, and hopefully I’ve grown and hopefully I’m still growing.”

She also hopes to continue her improvement in the years to come.

“I’ll probably watch an episode next summer from this summer and go like, ‘Ugh!’ And then laugh,” Moonves said on EW Live.

‘Big Brother 22’ is an all-star season

CBS confirmed in July that Season 22 of Big Brother would be an all-star season. The only other time that Big Brother has had an all-star season was in Season 7, which aired in 2006. The winner of Big Brother 7 was Mike “Boogie” Malin, who first starred in Season 2.

Big Brother is one of the first reality television series to begin production during the COVID-19 pandemic. CBS said that houseguests underwent a quarantine period prior to production, and they are getting tested several times before entering the house.

Related

‘Big Brother’: Brett Robinson and Rockstar Landry Reignite Their Beef Over TikTok Videos

Once the houseguests are inside the house, they will get tested weekly during the season. They will also have no contact with any crew members, and all supplies delivered will get disinfected. The staff and crew will also get tested prior to working regularly and will get screened every day.

“I’ve watched nine different COVID safety videos,” Moonves said, according to Entertainment Weekly. “We are happy to be back at work. And I truly believe we’re doing it in such a safe way.”

Big Brother 22 premiers on CBS on Aug. 5 at 9 p.m. EDT.

Best in Entertainment