A division of Banijay, the world’s largest international content producer and distributor, Banijay Americas includes six subsidiary production companies in the U.S., including Endemol Shine North America, Bunim/Murray Productions, Truly Original, 51 Minds Entertainment, Authentic Entertainment and Stephen David Entertainment.
A division of Banijay, the world’s largest international content producer and distributor, Banijay Americas includes six subsidiary production companies in the U.S., including Endemol Shine North America, Bunim/Murray Productions, Truly Original, 51 Minds Entertainment, Authentic Entertainment and Stephen David Entertainment.

Buzzfeed: Julie Chen Moonves Revealed 10 Fascinating Behind-The-Scenes Stories From 1,000 Episodes Of “Big Brother”

It’s official: Big Brother has reached 1,000 drama-packed episodes. But first, we sat down with host Julie Chen Moonves to reflect on 28 seasons and the legacy of the iconic show.

September 2, 2026

It’s hard to believe Big Brother fans have been “expecting the unexpected” for 1,000 episodes — and there’s one person who has been there every step of the way.

Person in elegant dress on stage, in front of "Big Brother 1000th" sign, holding a card in a TV studio setting
CBS / Via Getty

Since 2000, Julie Chen Moonves has been at the helm, guiding countless houseguests through evictions, competitions, blindsides, and some truly unforgettable live-TV moments. It’s hard to imagine a world of Big Brother without Julie’s iconic catchphrases like “But first,” “It’s official,” and “Love one another.”

To celebrate the record-breaking milestone, I spoke with Julie the morning after the 1,000th episode to hear about 26 years of hosting — from the chaos in her earpiece during live shows to the most chaotic moments backstage. She also revealed her favorite seasons, named the player she considers the ultimate Big Brother winner, and shared the biggest lesson the show has taught her.

Note: This interview has been modified for length and clarity.

Julie didn’t fully process the milestone of the 1,000th episode until the next morning.

A person poses on a red carpet in a sleeveless, textured dress at an event for CBS's "Big Brother" 1000th episode celebration
Francis Specker / Via CBS

Julie: That moment didn’t really hit me until this morning. I always think of myself as a train conductor. I’ve got a lot of pressure to get that train out of the station on time and then pull into the home station on time, so I have to compartmentalize.

I’m just getting to bask in it now, because I had a lot of responsibility last night to make sure Dan [Gheesling], Janelle [Pierzina], and the Cookout got asked the right questions, the evicted houseguest got enough love and support — and I have a lot of people in my earpiece telling me, “We’re over time” or “We’re under time.”

So I don’t let the emotion get to me — that’s when I channel my inner ‘Chenbot,’ and I’m like, “Just do your job, just do your job.” But there were moments when I looked out into the crowd, and I saw faces from the past. (Laughs) I think I only called one person the wrong name because of the lighting at the end of the night.

I’m old-school Chinese. I was raised by Chinese immigrants, and it was like, “You’re going to play piano, you’re going to get good grades, you’re going to be respectful.” So I’m a rule follower, and I’m kind of perfectly made to be the host of this incredible show called Big Brother, which is live, real, and raw. Then, when I can be more human, I feel like I can let my guard down and open my heart to the houseguests and to everyone.

I know God is the reason why we’re still here today. Big Brother is the little show that could. I see it as my duty and my job.

It took until Season 18 for Julie to stop feeling nervous before live shows.

A group of six women from a talk show set, dressed in a mix of casual and formal attire including dresses, a suit, and stylish tops
CBS / Via Everett Collection

Julie: I was nervous for so many seasons. I would feel my heart pounding beforehand, and meanwhile, I had done live television my whole life. While I was on Big Brother for many seasons, I was also either doing the morning news for CBS News or hosting a live daily talk show on CBS. But when it’s primetime, and it’s a different show than anything I’ve done, it’s all on your shoulders.

I’d say up until maybe Season 18 or so, I’d get nervous. Things kind of changed in 2020. I had started my personal relationship with God in 2018, and by 2020, I felt like a toddler. I was still learning why He created me and who He is, and developing my personal relationship with Him, which I still am.

And once I learned — and I’m still learning — to “let go and let God,” that’s when the nervousness went away. It’s television. I’m not saving lives. I’m not a doctor or a surgeon. It’s fun, and I’m human. It’s going to be okay. I didn’t learn that lesson probably until the summer of 2020, to really just let go.

There are times when old Julie comes back, when they tell me something disastrous, but I’m kind of like, “Let’s just go with it. Let’s see what happens.”

Julie can have three or four people talking to her through her earpiece while she’s hosting.

TV host stands on stage beside "Big Brother Finale" screen. She's wearing a knee-length, sleeveless dress with asymmetric details
Sonja Flemmiing / Via CBS

Julie: What people may not realize is that I can have three or four voices talking to me.

I have my live-show producer who’s telling me something. He might be saying like, “Just so you’re aware, Barrett is in the diary room, and he’s very upset.” At the same time, the director might be talking to me, saying, “Okay, get ready, camera present. I’m coming to you.” They’re in the same control booth, but each has a button they can use to talk to me, so sometimes they’re both talking at once.

Then I have my stage manager, who might be trying to communicate with me. Sometimes it’s just through hand signals, and often it’s his voice. He’s the best stage manager in the business. He’s the one who saved the Oscars with the envelope. He’s wonderful, calm, just incredible.

I could be talking to the house, and I have to listen to everything the houseguests are saying while getting all these cues. You have to be able to compartmentalize, multitask, hear a lot of voices at once — and then decide, “What am I going to do?”

Sometimes they wrap me when I’m talking to an evicted houseguest, and I’m like, “I’m going in for another question.” I’ve done live television my whole life, and I’m 56. So sometimes I break the rules. I’m like, “I’m going in. I feel it.”

One of the most chaotic behind-the-scenes Big Brother moments happened when the keys didn’t fit in the box.

Person in a formal, strapless black dress stands at a game show podium, holding a key marked "Vince," with "FIN" partially visible behind
Matthew Taplinger / Via CBS

Julie: I was recently reminded of this story by one of our executive producers, Don Wollman. He said, “This is why Julie’s the best in the business.”

He told me that a few years ago, pretty recently, on finale night, I was told at the last minute that the keys didn’t fit in the box. I should go back and rewatch it because I actually don’t remember.

He said, “You should have seen Julie. She was told the keys didn’t fit in the box, and she was just cool as a cucumber. I actually had to walk out of the control room because it was in meltdown. But I watched Julie, and as they told her, she was like, ‘Okay, got it. Noted. Done,’ and that was it.”

I actually kind of love it when there’s a little bit of drama. I like to think on the fly, and that’s from my live-TV background.