In late 2018, Julie Chen announced she was leaving CBS’ The Talk to spend time with her family, following the assault allegations that had surfaced in the press concerning her husband Les Moonves.
The latter formerly worked as CEO at the network, but not even his high position could save him from getting fired amid a string of women claiming they had either been taken advantage of or sexually harassed and assaulted by the father of four.
If that wasn’t bad enough, most of the incidents allegedly occurred throughout his marriage to Chen, whom he tied the knot with back in 2004, so people were naturally taken aback by the fact that the former chat show host appeared to be siding with her man while gradually stepping away from the limelight.
Chen, who has a $16 million fortune of her own, still has a number of jobs in Hollywood, so she’s not going to be running out of money anytime soon — particularly since her husband remains one of the wealthiest entertainment executives in the US.
His firing, however, brought upon CBS’ decision to deny him a $120 million severance package, which he later sued the company, resulting in an undisclosed settlement Moonves claimed he would donate to charity.
What Happened to Julie Chen?
Chen addressed viewers in one of her final appearances on The Talk in late 2018, telling fans that she was stepping down as a co-host on the panel, which was obviously a decision that was solely made on the scandal involving Moonves.
“I need to spend more time at home with my husband and our young son, so I’ve decided to leave The Talk. I have been at The Talk since the day it started nine years ago, and the cast crew and staff have become family to me over the years.”
Chen had previously said that working on The Talk was one of her favorite jobs, so it seemed odd that she would suddenly decide to step away — unless, of course, it was to save face from the scrutiny she’d have gotten had she stayed.
Her fellow host Sharon Osbourne added her two cents to the situation during the taping, saying, “I was asked a couple of months ago to make a statement supporting Leslie which I felt I was diplomatic as I could be with the statement that I made.
“But now after seven more women have come out, the stories are so similar, the pattern is so similar that for me — he’s not been convicted of any crime but obviously the man has a problem.
“And I like to say that Mr. Moonves has stepped down. He’s an extremely wealthy man. And good luck to him, he’s worked hard. He made this network No. 1. However, when a new regime comes into a company they sweep clean.”
Osbourne noted that people at CBS were scared of losing their jobs due to Moonves’ sexual assault claims followed by his firing because getting rid of a CEO usually means there’ll be a new team ushered in to steer the boat.
It would have been pretty hypocritical for Chen to weigh in on matters concerning the #MeToo movement when she was clearly standing by her husband, despite the dozens of allegations made against him.
An investigation performed by CBS clearly indicated that Moonves’ behavior around his colleagues was inappropriate, to say the least.
Despite all, Chen is still actively working in Hollywood. She left her role at The Talk but was sure to stay on board to continue hosting Big Brother — a position she has held since the start of the program back in 2000.
Additionally, Chen has also hosted the celebrity edition, which ran between 2018 to 2019. She’s also a recurring co-host on Entertainment Tonight, so to say that Chen isn’t staying busy and working because of her husband would be a lie.
With that said, however, that doesn’t mean her career hasn’t taken a huge hit because of her decision to stick by her man.
It’s believed that Moonves has a $700 million fortune to his name, and though he was CEO at CBS, his investments alone will continue to generate him millions of dollars per year.
Moonves is a businessman with side projects in social media, entertainment, and technology, so while his public reputation may be ruined, that’s not to say that he won’t continue making enough money to carry on living his luxurious lifestyle in Los Angeles.
Moonves and Chen own multiple homes in LA, including a $28.8 million oceanfront mansion, an estate in Beverly Hills worth $20 million, and a Park Avenue apartment for another $10 million.
Are you surprised that Chen stuck by her (very wealthy) husband?
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTErZ%2Bippeoe6S7zGiuoZmkYrWivM%2BepZ6cXam8brbUpaCeZZOdsq95wJ%2BrnqpdobKiwsinnmasmJp6ta3LpGSwoJmhsm6wxJ%2Bcp5yZo7RutMSrZJ2ho5y%2Foq%2FEnWShraOXrq%2BwjKWcrGWdpLyvwsSsZg%3D%3D