The Cosby Show family and its fans are mourning one of their own.
Malcolm-Jamal Warner drowned while on a family vacation in Costa Rica, People, among other outlets, confirmed. He was 54.
The late actor was best known for playing Bill Cosby's son Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, which ran from 1984 to 1992, and also starred Phylicia Rashad, Tempestt Bledsoe, Lisa Bonet, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Geoffrey Owens, and Raven Symoné, among others.
According to ABC News, Costa Rican National Police confirmed that Malcolm-Jamal died while swimming, when he was caught by a high current in the water
He was discovered Sunday afternoon, formally identified by Costa Rica's national police, and his cause of death was confirmed as asphyxia.
Malcolm-Jamal featured in all eight seasons of The Cosby Show, and received an Emmy nomination for the role.
He also starred with Eddie Griffin in the sitcom Malcolm & Eddie, which ran from 1996 to 2000, and among dozens of other guest roles, he most recently featured in 4 episodes of Ryan Murphy's 9-1-1 in 2024, and in three episodes of Alert: Missing Persons Unit.
Per TMZ, he was on vacation with his daughter, and is survived by her as well as his wife, though he appeared to not to publicly share their names.
In 2023, he opened up to People about The Cosby Show and its legacy — which was muddled after sexual assault allegations against its lead star Bill were unveiled — telling the outlet: "I know I can speak for all the cast when I say The Cosby Show is something that we are all still very proud of."
"We share a unique experience that keeps us lovingly bonded no matter how much time goes between seeing or hearing from each other," he added.
He also addressed the sexual assault allegations against Bill, who in 2021 was released from prison after serving three years of a three- to ten-year sentence. He was convicted of sexual assault in 2018 but later had the charge overturned in 2021, though five more women to accused him of sexual assault the following year.
"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," he maintained.9