Julie Chen Moonves Explains Why She Initially Turned Down ‘Big Brother’
etcanada.comJulie Chen Moonves is glad she said yes. With her new audiobook But First, God out on Tuesday, the “Big Brother” host spoke with ET Canada’s Keshia Chanté and revealed why she initially turned down the reality show job. READ MORE: Julie Chen Moonves On Being Ousted From ‘The Talk’ & Why She Has ‘Nothing But Love’ For The Co-Hosts Who Opposed Her “I turned it down because I was told, I was new at CBS News, I was only five months into working there, and I had dreams back then of becoming a ’60 Minutes’ correspondent,” she said. “So when they offered me ‘Big Brother’, I had a feeling if I host this, you know, strange sounding reality entertainment show, I don’t really think they’re going to want that same person being on ’60 Minutes’ as a correspondent.” She continued, “And when I asked, ‘Will this prevent me from ever walking the halls of ’60 Minutes’?’ and I was told, ‘Yes.’ I said, ‘Well, thank you, then I’m not interested in this job,’ because I was looking at like long game.
And they told me, ‘Well you work for the company. And we can technically assign you this job. And if you don’t do this assignment, it could be seen as insubordination.’ So I was like, ‘When’s that next flight to L.A.?
We’re going to Hollywood! I can’t wait to host this show! Pick me!'” Asked how she looks back on that now, Chen Moonves said, “That was God’s hands, you know?
I was like, ‘No.’ And God was like, ‘There’s a purpose here. Come back here. Come back here, little one. You’re going to do it.’ And I’m so grateful that I am still there and that I took it.” READ MORE: Julie Chen Moonves Says She ‘Felt Stabbed In The Back’ Amid ‘The Talk’ Exit: ‘That Was A Hard Time’ Chen Moonves has hosted “Big Brother” since its debut in 2000, but
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