CBS ‘Big Brother’ becomes first primetime series to hit 1,000th episode

LOS ANGELES (CBS, KYMA) - A milestone for CBS' "Big Brother" as it will be historic episode 1,000 Thursday night.

It is the first primetime series in U.S. history to achieve this milestone.

For more than a quarter century, "Big Brother" has been a summer institution on CBS, opening its doors to hundreds of houseguests, and welcoming Americans inside to watch their every move.

Julie Chen Moonves has been the host since day one.

When asked what is it that still has people watching strangers on their TV sets after all these years, Chen said, "You get to watch human nature...the good, bad and ugly all in one human being."

When the show first premiered in summer 2000, there were 28 cameras. This season, there are 112 HD cameras and 113 microphones recording 24 hours a day, with fans also able to watch the houseguests live online.

Season 16 winner Derrick Levassuer and season 24 winner Taylor Hale now help analyze the game on CBS' "Big brother: Unlocked."

Over the course of 28 seasons, "Big Brother" has delivered some of the most iconic moments in reality TV history.

Here's how the game works: Houseguests compete for power and form alliances, all to avoid eviction.

Make it to the final two and a jury of evicted houseguests decides who wins and takes home the $750,000 grand prize.

Despite being in total isolation, sometimes what's happening in the world makes its way into the house.

On September 11, 2001, producers broke the show's information blackout to tell the final three houseguests about the attacks.

For Monica Bailey, the news was personal. Her cousin, Tamitha Freeman, was missing from the World Trade Center. It was later confirmed she died.

Two decades later, in 2021, six Black houseguests formed the cookout alliance. Their point: It was time for "Big Brother" to crown its first Black winner, and they succeeded.

"I, as a minority, really related to it and found it very uplifting," Chen expressed. "They worked together for the greater good to make a point."

A year later, Hale made history again as the first Black woman to win.

"More important than being the first, that's the fact that I'm not the last. We've had two more Black women win since I won," Hale remarked. "Expect the unexpected."

For Chen, that's part of what 1,000 episodes represent: A show that keeps evolving and pivoting.

"All things are possible," Chen remarked.