Bill Cosby Issues Statement After Death of Onscreen Son Malcolm-Jamal Warner

The creator of one of the greatest television sitcoms is heartbroken by the death of his TV son.

July 22, 2025, 4:25pm

THE COSBY SHOW — Pictured: (back row, l-r) Malcolm-Jamal Warner as Theodore 'Theo' Huxtable, Phylicia Rashad as Clair Hanks Huxtable, Sabrina Le Beauf as Sondra Huxtable Tibideaux, Geoffrey Owens as Elvin Tibideaux, Tempestt Bledsoe as Vanessa Huxtable, (front row, l-r) Bill Cosby as Dr. Heathcliff 'Cliff' Huxtable, Keshia Knight Pulliam as Rudy Huxtable — Photo by: NBCU Photo Bank

Bill Cosby is devastated by the tragic accidental drowning death of his TV son, Malcolm-Jamal Warner. The two starred alongside one another on The Cosby Show for eight seasons.

Cosby handpicked Warner on the last day of the auditions for the role of Theodore “Theo” Huxtable. It would be fans’ most beloved role of Warner, symbolizing a positive coming-of-age story of a young Black boy during a time where such images were missing.

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Warner died at the age of 54 on July 20. He was vacationing with his family in Costa Rica.

After news of Warner’s death broke, Cosby’s rep Andrew Wyatt, told PEOPLE that his death “reminded him of the same call he received when his son died.” Cosby added, per Wyatt, “Malcolm was doing what he loved when he died — he was with his family. He had just done a concert in Minnesota and called Mr. Cosby and talked about it. They spoke all the time. He said ‘Malcolm was changing humanity.’”

He also spoke with CBS News about his passing. Cosby said he learned of Warner’s death from his on-screen wife, Phylicia Rashad, who starred as Claire Huxtable.

“We were embracing each other over the phone about a dearly beloved friend … Malcolm was always embracing relationships with everybody he worked with,” Cosby told CBS Weekend News anchor Jericka Duncan in an interview.

Of his casting on The Cosby Show, Warner explained, “They were looking for a 6-foot-2 15-year-old, and I was a 5-foot-5 13-year-old. It was the last day of auditioning, Good Friday, 1984. It was 6:30 in the evening, and my agent was begging the casting director to stay so I can come in and let me read. I did and I was called back for a network callback that Monday,” he told Backstage in 2019.