For Black youth and teens growing up in the mid-1980s, “The Cosby Show” offered something rarely seen on television up until that time: a sitcom that placed characters who looked like them in a positive light.
And Malcolm-Jamal Warner’s Theo Huxtable was the character Generation X most related to. Fans took quickly to social media on Monday as news of Warner’s accidental drowning in Costa Rica spread.
“It’s like losing one of us,” said Harriet Cammock, a 58-year-old Detroit author and speaker. “This is the thing with television. When you’re watching people every week on television, you think you know them and you’re related to them.”
Warner was swimming Sunday afternoon at Playa Cocles in Costa Rica’s Limon province when a current pulled him deeper into the Caribbean, according to that country’s Judicial Investigation Department.
First responders found him without vital signs.
Cori Murray, executive vice president of content at Ebony Magazine, was saddened upon hearing about Warner’s death. She said his Theo character mirrored the everyday Black teenager, which was rare to see on TV at the time.
While so many portrayals of young Black teenagers leaned negative, “The Cosby Show,” especially Theo, showed warmth, joy and relatability.
“He wasn’t just a character. We saw ourselves in him,” Murray said. “You know how Kendrick Lamar has the song ‘Not Like Us’? Well, Theo was one of us. He was like us.”
Murray, who met Warner a few times, recalled his character off-screen matched the warmth he exuded on television. She called him respectful and pleasant and said he had a “megawatt smile” that lit up the room.
“His energy stayed with you,” Murray said. “You don’t have a bad memory when it comes to Theo or Malcolm-Jamal Warner. As much as we loved the character, we also watched Malcolm grow up in real life. No scandals. No mess. Just a talented young man who matured into an upstanding, handsome adult.”
“The Cosby Show” was groundbreaking and a ratings giant, drawing in viewers across racial, cultural and economic backgrounds. The show ran for 197 episodes from 1984 to 1992. In 1986, Warner earned an Emmy nomination for supporting actor in a comedy.
The show starring Bill Cosby as Cliff Huxtable and Phylicia Rashad as his wife, Clair, “made the wider society aware that there are Black people who live like white people do,” said Cammock, who is Black. “The perception that we don’t live like they do was hurtful.”
Gil Robertson, co-founder and president of the African American Film Critics Association, reflected on Warner’s rare path in the entertainment industry.
“There was never any scandal, no controversy,” said Robertson. “He transitioned from a teen star to a respected adult without the baggage we often see from others in his generation. That’s no small feat.”
Robertson added: “The legacy of Theo Huxtable — and Malcolm’s performance — will live on. It left an imprint that will continue to resonate in our culture for generations.”
Lynn Reasonover, 62, of Oak Lawn, Illinois, began receiving messages Monday afternoon about Warner’s death. Her initial thoughts were “Nope, didn’t happen.”
“Then, I kept seeing the news flashes and friends started sending texts,” Reasonover said. “So, it’s sinking in. Makes you realize how much some celebrities help shape our memories. His work had such a huge impact. I’m feeling a personal loss because we grew up with him. It’s like losing a part of our childhood.”
Reasonover saw much of her family in the Huxtables, where both parents were professionals who valued education and handled family issues with understanding and love.
“They had similar problems to what we experienced growing up,” she said. “We could relate and that’s why we laughed.”
Rasheda Williams, 46, of Detroit was about the same age as Rudy, the youngest character on “The Cosby Show” and Theo’s little sister. Williams said she and others are mourning Warner’s passing because of what they saw in the character he played.
“He’s like the ideal cousin you wish you had,” Williams said. “Hearing the news has really affected some of us. It was unexpected. He wasn’t sick. That makes it even more tragic.”
“He wasn’t just an actor,” she said. “He was also an activist, a positive role model, not just for young Black men, but for young Black women as well.”
