Who is former CBS CEO Les Moonves? He produced shows including Friends, Survivor and The Big Bang Theory, but was fired in light of sexual assault claims; TV-host wife Julie Chen stayed by his side

Feb 2 , 2025

Les Moonves and Julie Chen have been married since 2004. Photo: Getty Images

Moonves joined CBS in 1995 and was with the network for more than two decades; in 2017 the first sexual assault claims were filed against him, leading to his departure

Leslie Moonves, 75, was instrumental in developing hit shows including Friends and ER. He was made chairman and CEO of American network CBS in 2003 and has been credited with having major hits Survivor and The Big Bang Theory produced on his watch. But in 2018, after sexual-assault allegations against him were made public, Moonves was dismissed.

Julie Chen and Les Moonves arrive at Washington National Cathedral for the funeral of Senator John McCain in September 2018. Photo: AFP via Getty Images

His wife, TV anchor and presenter Julie Chen, 55, claims she was collateral damage in the fallout, insisting her husband was innocent.

Here’s what you need to know about the landmark case and how Moonves’ reputation unravelled.

The first Les Moonves sexual assault claim was in 2017

CBS chairman and CEO Les Moonves speaking at the 2017 Milken Institute Global Conference in Los Angeles. Photo: Getty Images

In 2017, Phyllis Golden-Gottlieb, a former executive at Lorimar-Telepictures, filed a confidential report with the Los Angeles Police Department claiming that Moonves, then a colleague, had sexually assaulted her numerous times in the 1980s. Golden-Gottlieb was 81 when she filed the report. Per The Hollywood Reporter, although the statute of limitations meant no criminal or civil charges could be brought against Moonves, she had been inspired by the #MeToo movement, under whose auspices women had lodged complaints against film mogul Harvey Weinstein and other prominent men.

Further claims emerged in 2018

In 2018, Moonves and CBS were the subject of a New Yorker exposé that detailed the experiences of six women who claimed Moonves had sexually assaulted them. The report was written by journalist Ronan Farrow, previously instrumental in investigating the claims of sexual assault against Weinstein.

Ironically, Moonves had become a prominent voice in the #MeToo movement and even helped establish the Commission on Eliminating Sexual Harassment and Advancing Equality in the Workplace, the report said. After more than a decade at the helm, Moonves was fired from CBS, although the Hollywood heavyweight maintained his innocence. “Untrue allegations from decades ago are now being made against me that are not consistent with who I am,” he said in a statement released as he left the company.