Malcolm-Jamal Warner was everybody’s favourite little brother as Theo Huxtable within the ’80s mega-hit “The Cosby Show.”
However the star — who died tragically Monday after getting caught up in an ocean present whereas swimming in Costa Rica — had launched into a life far faraway from Hollywood, in Atlanta, Georgia, with spouse Tenisha and their 8-year-old daughter.
“I think he decided to come to Atlanta just because it felt a bit more grounded. It felt more like a home to him,” Dashiell Smith, one of many actor’s greatest associates and bandmates, advised The Put up.
Warner, 54, moved to Atlanta for his multi-season run on the Fox present “The Resident,” taking part in fan favourite Dr. AJ “The Raptor” Austin.
He purchased a $1.3 million, five-bedroom home within the suburb of Decatur, telling the Atlanta Journal-Structure in 2023 that, “Music and my wife and daughter keep me from losing my s–t.”
Business sources advised The Put up Warner had doubtless amassed a fortune of round $6 million. He was simply 13 when he joined the “The Cosby Show,” taking part in Theo Huxtable for eight seasons. It was TV’s No. 1 present between 1985 and 1990.
Stations paid a record-breaking $600 million for the rights to air reruns starting in 1988 — a deal that generated greater than $1.5 billion over twenty years, in line with Forbes in 2017.
However in 2014, most platforms pulled the collection as a backlash grew towards star and creator Invoice Cosby, who was dealing with renewed allegations of sexual misconduct. (Greater than 60 ladies accused Cosby of crimes, together with rape and drug-facilitated sexual assault. He served almost three years in jail for drugging and violating Temple College sports activities administrator Andrea Constand in 2004 and was launched when the sentence was overturned in June 2021.)
Warner admitted in 2023 that he and his former co-stars could possibly be “making a killing” had the present not been yanked — even imagining a attainable reboot: “We could have made a lot of money. ‘Fuller House,’ they’re doing their thing.’The Conners,’ man, we’d be making a killing right now.”
Requested by interviewer Jemele Hill if he was “resentful” as a result of “one person impacted you guys’ lives and the way this show was seen,” Warner responded, “No. Not resentment … I get how this business works, for one. And just that whole situation is so layered, man.”
“I can’t defend him or his actions at all. But I also can’t throw him under the bus completely … ” Warner added of Cosby. “There is the piece of the financial hit that we all took but also it hasn’t really affected my career.”
Warner additionally revealed that he and his workforce had labored to arrange his profession “so my life would not have to be dependent upon that show or dependent upon Theo.”
As a substitute, the actor went on to seem in different tasks, together with the UPN sitcom “Malcolm & Eddie” from 1996 to 2000, and had recurring roles in “Suits,” “Community” and different reveals. He additionally performed Warner portrayed Al Cowlings in 2016’s “American Crime Story: The People v O.J. Simpson.”
In Atlanta, Warner performed bass within the Organic Misfits jazz band alongside Smith.
“He loved to learn. He never thought that he was too big to grow … he was always one to immerse himself into his passions,” stated Smith.
Warner was a “warm, genuine, loving father and a great friend,” Smith added. “He was very protective of his family. We formed a fantastic brotherhood and that will just be a memory I will always cherish … As you can imagine, I’m not doing so good. It’s devastating.”
Music promoter J. Scott Fugate recalled how Warner’s household would attend the Organic Misfits’ gigs, and the band carried out at a espresso bar in Grant Park final month.
“I can’t tell you how much he loved his little girl — and she loved him so much,” Fugate stated, “She was so full of joy watching him play, and she would dance. I’ve been thinking about her a lot and hoping she wasn’t on the beach where this all happened.”
In one in all his final movies posted to social media earlier than his dying, Warner was seen sporting a flower in his hair — positioned there by his daughter to have a good time her birthday.
“Just wanted to remind you, as I remind myself, that no matter what’s going on there’s always a reason to smile, if you just take a minute to stop and take stock, I guarantee you can find at least one reason to smile, and if for some reason you can’t find a reason to smile, then that’s probably the best time to be the reason for somebody else to smile,” he posted.
Warner had “no ego and never acted like a star,” stated Fugate. “He was simply one other musician round city.
“He told me he was thankful he couldn’t sing — because he knew that if he had sung as a kid and become a teen idol, now he’d be just another washed-up child star.”
Warner stated he met his spouse by way of mutual associates when he was 45, and opened up about their relationship throughout a Could 2025 look on the “Hot & Bothered” podcast.
“You don’t have to be in your 20s looking for your soulmate,” he stated.
Talking of his marriage, Warner stated he “never second-guessed it.”
“We’ve been together almost 10 years and we have never had a fight, an argument, a raised voice or a harsh word said to one another … And it’s not like we agree on everything,” he stated. “I think because we met later in life, we’ve just always been at a point where we have a way of communicating like adults.”
Warner was additionally extremely near his mother, Pam Warner,
His cousin Zsaneika Bass posted on Fb that she was positive the actor is now along with his late grandma Mary, including: “Shedding our cousin Malcolm-Jamal Warner has not solely shaken our household, it’s touched a nation …
“Without my cousin Pam Warner, the Original Momager, there would be no Malcolm. PERIOD! She didn’t just raise a son, she nurtured a LEGACY.”
