Julie Chen is a renowned American television host, producer, news anchor, reporter, and journalist. Julie Chen net worth is about $30 million.
Who is Julie Chen?
Julie Chen, with the middle name Suzanne, and the married name of Moonves, is a TV personality who is well-known for hosting “Big Brother,” a popular CBS reality program from the year 2000 to the present. The US version of this reality series started in late 2000.
Julie Chen is known for hosting the show the longest among all the show versions for any country. From 2010 to 2018, Chen co-hosted and worked as a moderator for eight seasons of “The Talk,” a daytime CBS show. She has also helped host another CBS series, “The Early Show.” Her prowess and repertoire in her field are well-known making her a star as well as financially successful.
Want to learn more about prominent TV hosts? Check out Dr Phil and Jeff Probst here.
Julie Chen’s Net Worth Estimate
Julie Chen’s net worth estimate is about $30 million.
Julie Chen’s Height, Weight
Julie Chen’s height is 5 feet 5 inches (165 centimeters), and her weight is 123 pounds (56 kilograms.)
Julie Chen’s Age
Julie Chen is 52 years old as of 2022.
Julie Chen’s Eye and Hair Color
Her eyes are black, and her hair is dark brown. Her shoe size is 9US.
Julie Chen’s Place of Birth and Early Life
Julie Suzanne Chen Moonves was born on 6th January 1960 in Queen City of New York.
Her parents were Wang Chen and David Chen, who were Chinese immigrants. Her mother was brought up in Rangoon, located in Burma. Chen’s father, David Chen, migrated to Taiwan after the civil war in China, which is where he originally was born.
Her grandfather on her mother’s side, Lou Gaw Tong, belonged to Penglai, located in China’s Fujian province. He was raised in extreme poverty and became rich afterward through a business venture involving grocery stores.
Julie Chen grew up with sisters named Gladys and Victoria, who were both her senior. In the Whitestone area, Julie attended their junior high academic program, located in her hometown of Queens.
She attended St. Francis academic school as a senior high student and graduated in 1987. Later, she went to Southern California University and completed her studies in 1991. Her primary subjects in undergraduate study were broadcasting, media and journalism, and English.
These subjects helped propel Julie’s career and make Julie Chen net worth an estimated $30 million.
Julie Chen’s Career
Julie Chen started her career in 1990. She got her first job as an internee with Andy Cohen at CBS’s Morning News show. She used to answer phone calls there and copy faxes to give them out in the office. No one knew that she would become the anchor of the same series after a few years.
A year later, in 1991, when she was still a school student, Chen worked as a receptionist for one season at ABC NewsOne. Later, she got a promotion and started working in production from 1992 to 1995. From 1995 to 1997, she worked as a news anchor for local bulletins for WDTN-Tv, after becoming known in Dayton, Ohio.
Two years later, in 1999, Julie Chen became the host of CBS’s “Morning News.” She also started serving as the news anchor for CBS’s other show, “This Morning” and “The Early Show.” She worked with Rene Syler, Erica Hill, Harry Smith, Jane Clayson, Hannah Storm, and Maggie Rodriguez for about three years, up to 2002.
In 2000, she started hosting “Big Brother.” Julie Chen got hit by widespread criticism for the initial season of Big Brother for being highly scripted. Her audience was looking for someone with a little more of an impromptu approach.
Additionally, she failed to express enough emotions while interacting with the audience and while taking interviews in live programs. People started calling her “Chenbot,” referring to her robotic approach to her work.
Chen said that she didn’t feel strongly toward or against the nickname while talking about this term in her two interviews. This nickname might have originated because of her news anchor beginnings, which she thinks might have come from her wish to be straightforward, and not twist her delivery.
Chen again appreciated her nickname once when she talked about the mugs fashioned after her. During a segment in “The Early Show,” she proudly called herself the ‘Chenbot.’
From 2002 to 2010, before leaving her previous daily position, Julie Chen started co-hosting CBS “The Early Show.” However, she remained working as a contributing anchor until the show got canceled.
Before becoming a part of CBS News, Chen used to work at WCBS-TV, located in New York City. She served there as a weekend anchor and reporter.
On 18th October 2010, “The Talk,” a CBS daytime talk show, premiered. It featured Julie Chen as the moderator and co-host. The show was created by Leah Remini, Sharon Osbourne, Sara Gilbert, Holly Peete, and others.
Five years later, in 2015, Julie Chen revealed on her “The Talk” show that she used to work in Dayton, and according to the news director of Dayton, she could not become a news anchor due to her ethnicity, namely her Asian eyes. Much discussion revolved around what to do about it, and the implications it would cause if any changes were to be made.
She was recommended to get plastic surgery after agreeing with a big-time agent. To lower the skin fold of her upper eyelid, also known as epicanthic folds, Julie Chen ultimately decided to get this surgical procedure.
On 18th September 2018, Julie Chen declared in a previously recorded tape about leaving “The Talk.” She said that she wouldn’t come back to the show as she felt she was not giving her husband enough time, and needed to change that. She announced this after receiving many sexual abuse allegations involving her husband.
Despite the turbulent career, Julie still has had overall success, which has contributed to Julie Chen net worth totaling around $30 million.
Julie Chen’s Personal Life and Family
Julie had her first real interaction with love in Los Angeles as a news assistant at ABC News. She met Gary Donahue there, who was the news editor of television. Later, he became her boyfriend, but their relationship ended soon.
Julie Chen started a relationship with Les Moonves. He was the president of CBS Television at the time, as well as one of the top executive officers. Although they loved each other, they began dating when he was already in a marital relationship. Nancy Moonves was his initial wife at the time.
On 22nd April 2003, Les signed a contract with Viacom. It was a project totaling five years with the promise of millions of dollars, including investment and profit. A week later, after signing this contract, Nancy Wiesenfeld Moonves filed a case in the Superior Court of Los Angeles for divorce, mentioning having incompatible differences with her husband.
This divorce case got delayed for about two years as they had disagreements about their financial settlements. However, on 10th December 2004, Les Moonves was called to the court to give his wife a premature divorce. The court left the support of the spouse and children undecided and assured it to be looked at on some other date.
On 23rd December 2004, Julie Chen and Les Moonves got married. The event was held in Acapulco (Mexico) in the form of a closed, small ceremony. Five years later, in 2009, Chen and Moonves welcomed their first child on the 24th of September, a baby boy named Charlie.
Four years after giving birth, in late 2013, Julie Chen revealed something personal while hosting “The Talk’s” beginning episodes of Season four. She indicated that she underwent surgical repair and reconstruction of her eyelid. She further added the reason by mentioning that she felt inclined to go for the surgery due to pressure from her team.
According to her, this decision took her family away from her. However, she believed in living with her choices, as those decisions took them to where they are today. She ended by saying that she only wanted to look forward.
In 2018, Julie Chen started using her married name. After facing several sexual assault accusations involving her husband, Moonves, she committed to the name.
On 13th September 2018, she signed off the reality show “Big Brother” episode by including her last name, “Moonves”, in her name as she signed off and closed the show for the night. Signing off this way broke her previously built pattern, which she used to end the show by saying Julie Chen.
Chen’s viewers and fans gave mixed responses to her new signing-off style. On 27th November 2018, in a press release, an official confirmation about Julie Chen came from CBS saying that she would come back as a host with the new signing-off name in “Celebrity Big Brother” during the show’s second season.
Julie Chen’s Sources Of Income
Since joining CBS’s “The Talk” in 2010, Julie Chen has been one of the show’s main hosts. She earns an annual salary of $500,000 from the work. In addition to her “The Talk” income, Chen also makes money from other sources.
Chen is a co-founder of a production company called Moonves-Chen Productions. The company produces TV shows and films. Chen has also been a spokesperson for several brands, including L’Oreal and Diet Pepsi. Her earnings from these sponsorships are unknown, but they are likely sizable.
Finally, Chen has also made some money by authoring books. In 2016, she released a book titled “The Day I Shot Out My TV: And Other Reflections On Being A Crazy Dog Mom.”
Julie Chen makes an annual salary of $300,000 from her hosting gig on Big Brother. In addition to that, she also earns income from other sources.
She has a clothing line with Kmart and has also been the spokesperson for the diet company Nutrisystem. Chen has also written a few books about her experience as a first-generation Chinese American.
Julie Chen earns a combined $2 million from her hosting gigs on “The Early Show” and “Big Brother.” Julie also makes an annual salary of $300,000 from her job as an anchor for “CBS This Morning.”
Julie Chen’s Other Facts
In 2000, Chen was named one of People magazine’s “50 Most Beautiful People”. She left The Early Show in 2002 to become the host of the CBS reality show Big Brother.
Julie Chen is a fitness enthusiast and has worked out since she was a teenager. She believes that fitness is key to good health and vitality. Chen’s workout routine includes cardio, strength training, and pilates. She also follows a healthy diet, high in fruits and vegetables and low in processed foods.
Chen says that exercise has helped her maintain her weight over the years. According to her, she has never been on a diet. She makes sure that she works out regularly and eats healthily. She also credits her healthy lifestyle for keeping her skin looking young and radiant.
Chen advises other women to make fitness a priority in their lives. She focused on the importance of both physical and mental health. According to her, fitness can help you look and feel your best.
Despite her success, Chen is also known for her charity work. In 2001, she founded the Julie Chen Foundation to support underserved youth in Los Angeles. The foundation provides scholarships and mentorships to help young people pursue their education and career goals. Chen also participates in other charity events throughout the year.
Chen has won eight Daytime Emmy Awards, three Gracie Awards, and one honorary Peabody Award.
Julie Chen is an Emmy Award-winning journalist and the host of “The Talk.” Chen has worked in television for over 25 years.
She is the youngest of three children. Her parents got separated when she was quite young, and she moved with her mother to Queens, New York. Chen has said that her mother worked two jobs to support the family and that she often had to pamper her younger siblings.
Chen is proud of her son, and it’s clear that he means the world to her. According to her, Charlie is growing up fast.
Julie Chen’s Net Worth & Bio Summary
Name | Julie Chen |
Real Name | Julie Suzanne Chen Moonves |
Age | 52 |
Place of Birth | Queens, New York |
Occupation | Host, News Anchor, Producer, Journalist |
Net Worth Estimate | $30 million |
Date of Birth | January 6, 1970 |
Nationality | American |
Height | 5 feet and 5 inches |
Weight | 123 pounds (56 kg) |