Malcolm-Jamal Warner was still a kid when he became the one of the most recognizable sons and brothers ever as Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show. Throughout the show’s eight season run, America watched Warner grow from a gullible teenager into a young man.
It can been hard on many child actors. Yet, Warner seemed to go with the flow catching work elsewhere whenever he could. The character was initially inspired by Bill Cosby’s own son, Ennis. But you can tell that Warner was morphing Theo into his own creation. The first episode dealt with Theo not interested in education and the final episode involved Theo graduating from college.
Not that you might have remembered it. The episode aired during the 1992 L.A. Riots following the acquittals of four LAPD officers in the Rodney King beating. But by 1992, America was growing tired of Cosby and his “Pollyanna” style of sitcoms. Yes, it would’ve been great to live in a society where race was never really an issue and all families really didn’t have to deal with the consequences of Reaganomics and the recession of the early 1990s.
But it seemed more Cosby tried to push away the truth, the more it entered into the show. While it’s obvious he got rid of Lisa Bonet due to jealousy and who knows what else, but one thing A Different World showed us was that college wasn’t for everyone – not even Denise Huxtable. To be honest, I never did like The Cosby Show for the reason you could tell how egocentric Cosby was about things. Just because a show is groundbreaking and tackles a subject matter differently doesn’t equate extreme excellence.
Let’s not forget during the first season whereas most TV sitcoms would air a Christmas show within a week or so of the holiday, The Cosby Show aired “Father’s Day” on Dec. 20, 1984 where Bill, I mean Cliff, showed off all his Father’s Day gifts because he had to make every episode about himself in one way or another. Go back and watch the series and you’ll see how self-centered it was to always make Bill, I mean Cliff, the episode’s main focus. Even when Rudy had her first period, most young women would turn to their older sisters or mothers, but this was one where Bill, dammit! – Cliff, had to make it about himself.
Following the end of The Cosby Show, the above-mentioned sexual predator spearheaded a horrible sitcom Here and Now where Warner tried to play a Theo clone working at a youth center in Harlem. Cosby raved about it before it premiered but once the bad reviews came in and no one watched it, Cosby distanced himself even though he was the showrunner and justified its cancelation on poor writing.
At 22, Warner could’ve easily fallen down the same rabbit hole too many former child stars did. But he reinvented himself appearing in more roles for adults. He appeared in TV movies like Tyson and The Tuskegee Airmen, both aired on HBO and had a supporting role in Drop Zone. But feature films would never be his medium as he would only get supporting roles or they’d go direct to video.
Warner appeared on the UPN show Malcom & Eddie alongside Eddie Griffin and had recurring roles on hit TV shows like Community, Dexter and Sons of Anarchy (playing a very un-Theo Huxtable role). He famously played Al “A.C.” Cowlings in the award-winning series The People vs. O.J. Simpson. He hilariously played Orlando resident Arthur Washington, a Black Republican on Key & Peele where he’s constantly adjusting the waist band on his “DadJeans” when he gets irritated.
He also had a notable recurring role as Amir Casey on 9-1-1, in which he played a hospital nurse who lost his wife in an apartment fire caused the carelessness of Bobby Nash (Peter Krause) when he was an alcoholic. This along with Sons of Anarchy showed that Warner had range as an actor more than delivering lines to canned laughter.
Warner also focused on directing TV shows including The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, where he also guest starred during an episode. Even though it’s fallen into obscurity, he also directed the home video Time Out: The Truth about HIV, AIDS and You, which is probably more well known for a commercial on the VHS copies of Wayne’s World.
Warner was also a musician, playing bass guitar, and a poet. He won a Grammy in 2015 for Best Tradition R& B Performance for his work on Stevie Wonder’s “Jesus Children of America.” He also was nominated for a Grammy for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album for Hiding in Plain View.
Despite growing up in the spotlight, Warner lived a very, very private personal life. He dated actress Michelle Thomas up until her untimely death in 1998. He also dated Regina King and Karen Malina White. However, very little was known about his wife and daughter, who is reportedly 8. I would suggest as they and other family members are going through a tough time, we honor Warner’s wishes and left them grieve and mourn in private.
It’s reported Warner died of an accidental drowning at a resort in Limon Province, Costa Rica.
What was your favorite role of his? Please comment.
Zane Says 