America mourns The Cosby Show star Malcolm-Jamal Warner; fans say a generation 'grew up on him'

The Cosby Show star Malcom-Jamal Warner was found dead on Sunday July 21 in Costa Rica, the cause being an accidental drowning. He was 54 years old at the time of death. Netizens soon paid tribute to the beloved actor, with user Rilla pointing out that his generation grew up on The Cosby Show.


Warner’s starring role in iconic sitcom was Theo Huxtable, the son of Cliff and Clair Huxtable. The Cosby Show creator Bill Cosby had conceived Theo Huxtable using his real-life dyslexic son, Ennis Cosby, as a basis. Like Ennis, Theo was eventually revealed to have dyslexia in the season 6 episode "Theo’s Gift".

Malcom-Jamal Warner would eventually become the youngest person ever nominated for the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series for his performance. In his adult career he would branch out into other interests such as jazz music and activism.


Tributes to Malcolm-Jamal Warner flooded social media after news of his death spread, with the NAACP formally paying respects to the actor and telling him to Rest In Power.


User Danny Deraney said his Gen X heart broke when learning of the news. He also fondly reminisced on the iconic Cosby Show moment where Theo Huxtable dons a $95 Gordon Gartrell shirt.




The Martin Luther King Jr. Center commended Malcolm-Jamal for his work in furthering MLK Jr’s legacy, notably by hosting the 2023 Beloved Community Awards.




Indeed, Malcolm-Jamal had personally paid tribute to MLK Jr and numerous other black American luminaries during a Black History Month video he posted earlier this year.




Actress Marlee Matlin remembered that Malcolm was “the nicest guy” and considered it a privilege to be in the same company with him.




User glynderella_ noted that aside from his role in the Cosby Show, Malcolm was also a jazz musician, poet, and Grammy Award winner.




User Mike Beauvais reminisced about another iconic The Cosby Show scene where Theo Huxtable got his ear pierced without telling his parents.




User 2SweetScorpio remembered that MCU star Anthony Mackie had once paid a homage to Theo Huxtable’s Gordon Gartrell shirt, and called Malcolm Jamal-Warner “a massive part of pop culture”.



While Malcolm Jamal-Warner did have a number of high-profile relationships during his lifetime, including with Michelle Thomas and Karen Malina White, when he finally did settle down and get married, he chose not to publicize the identities of his wife or child. Nonetheless, they will be mourning the loss of a loving husband and father, just as the rest of America mourns an artist who endured across generations.

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