Big Brother ends with a dramatic twist as Julie Chen subtly references husband Les Moonves' firing

Julie Chen
(Image credit: CBS)

For once, the most dramatic moment of Thursday's Big Brother was the signoff.

At the close of the episode, which was the first time host Julie Chen had appeared on television since CBS fired her husband, former CEO Les Moonves, due to allegations of sexual misconduct, she signed off by saying, "I'm Julie Chen Moonves. Goodnight." This might seem innocuous, but it sent a clear message because it was the first time the host had ever closed the show by using Moonves as part of her last name, People reports.

People also reports that Chen's signoff made the show's production crew gasp. One source said, "Everyone knows that it’s a big 'f— you' to CBS that she did it, because she never, ever refers to herself as anything but Julie Chen."

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When Moonves initially faced allegations of sexual misconduct in July, Chen released a statement on Twitter saying that she fully stands behind her husband, and she briefly mentioned this statement on an episode of The Talk. But following new allegations published on Sunday, and Moonves' ultimate firing, she sat out the next several episodes of The Talk, releasing a statement saying she was going to spend time with her family. You can watch Chen's signoff below. Brendan Morrow

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Brendan Morrow

Brendan is a staff writer at The Week. A graduate of Hofstra University with a degree in journalism, he also writes about horror films for Bloody Disgusting and has previously contributed to The Cheat Sheet, Heavy, WhatCulture, and more. He lives in New York City surrounded by Star Wars posters.