Malcolm-Jamal Warner Was ‘Proud’ of the Legacy ‘The Cosby Show’ Left Behind Despite Bill Cosby Scandal

Beloved TV star Malcolm-Jamal Warner — best known for playing Theo Huxtable for all eight seasons of The Cosby Show from 1984 to 1992 — accidentally drowned at age 54 during a family vacation in Costa Rica, sources say.

Local officials confirmed that Warner got caught in a high current while swimming off the coast of the Central American nation near Playa Cocles, a beach in the province of Limón, and died due to asphyxia, according to an ABC News report.

The sitcom star’s body was formally identified by Costa Rica’s national police.

Warner played the only son of now scandal-scarred Bill Cosby’s Dr. Cliff Huxtable on the NBC hit. The role earned him an Emmy Award nomination in 1986 — the same year he was tapped to host an episode of Saturday Night Live.

In 2023, Warner told People that despite the allegations later made against his screen dad, he and his show fam — who included Phylicia Rashad, Sabrina Le Beauf, Lisa Bonet, Tempestt Bledsoe and Keshia Knight Pulliam — were still proud of their work.

“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 told the outlet.

Cosby, 88, was convicted of sexual assault in 2018, but the conviction was overturned on a technicality three years later — and he was sprung from the slammer. The former pudding pitchman has been accused of sexual misconduct by dozens of women — but maintains he’s innocent.

After The Cosby Show, Warner went on to star in the UPN sitcom Malcolm & Eddie with funnyman Eddie Griffin from 1996 to 2000, BET’s Reed Between the Lines from 2011 to 2015 and Fox’s The Resident from 2018 to 2023.

Last year, he also launched the podcast Not All Hood with Weusi Baraka and Candace Kelley, which explored the lived experiences and identities of Blacks in America.

Warner is survived by his wife and their 8-year-old daughter, whose names the protective performer never publicly revealed.