Earlier this week, we reported that Malcolm-Jamal Warner, who was best known for playing Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, died on Sunday in an accidental drowning. He was 54 years-old. Now, Bill Cosby himself is speaking out to pay tribute to Warner in a rare public statement.
Cosby Responds To Warner’s Death
Cosby, 88, revealed that after learning of Warner’s death, he called Phylicia Rashad, who played his wife Claire Huxtable on The Cosby Show.
“We were embracing each other over the phone about a dearly beloved friend,” Cosby told CBS News. “Malcolm was always embracing relationships with everybody he worked with.”
Warner died last Sunday while on vacation in Costa Rica. Officials said that he was swimming when he was pulled out to the ocean by a current. Rescuers managed to drag Warner’s body to shore, but by then, he no longer had vital signs. He was declared dead on the beach.
The character that Warner played on The Cosby Show was based on Cosby’s only real-life son Ennis. Sadly, Ennis was later murdered in 1997. Cosby reportedly compared learning of Warner’s death to the moment he found out his son had been killed.
“It felt the same way,” Cosby’s spokesperson Andrew Wyatt said.
Backstory ‘Cosby Show’ Star Malcolm-Jamal Warner Found Dead At 54
Cosby’s Final Conversation With Warner
In his latest interview, Cosby revealed that he last talked to Warner about three months ago. At the time, they were discussing Warner’s successful music career.
Back in 2015, Warner won a Grammy for best traditional R&B performance for his cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Jesus Children of America.” Warner was last nominated for a Grammy in 2023, when he was up for best spoken word poetry album.
“He was very proud of what he had done,” Cosby recalled.
Warner played Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show from 1984 until 1992. He was only 16 years-old when he scored an Emmy nomination for outstanding supporting actor for his work on the sitcom. Cosby gushed over Warner for his professionalism, saying that even as a child, he was dedicated to his craft.
“He was never afraid to go to his room and study and make sure he followed whatever he had learned in the acting school he went to,” Cosby said.
The Cosby Show’s legacy was forever tarnished in 2015. It was then that over 50 women came forward to accuse Cosby of sexual assault. At the time, Warner lamented that The Cosby Show would no longer be seen as the counter to the negative portrayal of people of color on film and television.
“And the fact that we no longer have that, that’s the thing that saddens me the most. Because in a few generations the Huxtables will have been just a fairy tale,” Warner said.
Related: Bill Cosby, 88, Breaks His Silence After His ‘Cosby Show’ Son Malcolm-Jamal Warner Dies At 54
Cosby’s Sexual Assault Scandal
Cosby was convicted of sexual assault in 2018. That conviction was overturned in 2021. However, he has since been accused of sexual assault by at least five more women. In the years since then, Cosby has been laying low and staying out of the public eye. That’s what made it surprising that he came forward to give such a lengthy interview about Warner in the wake of his passing.
Though Warner never publicly defended Cosby, he always stood by The Cosby Show. Indeed, he was loyal to the once-beloved sitcom to the very end.
“I can understand why some people can’t watch the show and enjoy it because of everything that’s going on now,” Warner told The New York Post in 2021. “But I think…there’s a generation of young people who have pursued higher education or have started loving families because of the influence of that show.”
“So it’s kind of like, you can’t discount its impact on television culture and American culture,” he added.
Warner Was ‘Very Proud’ Of The Cosby Show
Warner doubled down on this sentiment in a 2023 interview.
“I know I can speak for all the cast when I say The Cosby Show is something that we are all still very proud of,” Warner told People Magazine at the time. “We share a unique experience that keeps us lovingly bonded no matter how much time goes between seeing or hearing from each other.”
“Regardless of how some people may feel about the show now, I’m still proud of the legacy and having been a part of such an iconic show that had such a profound impact on — first and foremost, Black culture — but also American culture,” Warner concluded.
Regardless of how you feel about Cosby, it can’t be denied that Warner was an incredible talent who was also a true class act. Rest in peace, Malcolm-Jamal Warner.
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