Tracee Ellis Ross, Magic Johnson, Sherri Shepherd and Niecy Nash-Betts are among the Hollywood stars mourning Malcolm-Jamal Warner after news broke Monday that he died.
Warner, best known for his role as Theo Huxtable on The Cosby Show, died from an accidental drowning off the coast of Costa Rica on Sunday, the Costa Rican National Police told multiple media outlets, including ABC News. He was 54.
Tracee Ellis Ross, who starred alongside Warner in Reed Between the Lines on BET, shared a carousel of photos of her and Warner on Instagram.
“I love you, Malcolm. First I met you as Theo with the rest of the world then you were my first TV husband,” she wrote in the caption. “My heart is so so sad. What an actor and friend you were: warm, gentle, present, kind, thoughtful, deep, funny, elegant. You made the world a brighter place. Sending so much love to your family. I’m so sorry for this unimaginable loss.”
Niecy Nash-Betts also took to Instagram to remember Warner, writing alongside a photo of the two of them that they “just spoke.”
“You were giving my my flowers for my work in @grotesqueriefx and we talked about how happy we both were in our marriages. Damn friend,” she said. “You were cornerstone of The Cosby Show. We all loved Theo! Never to be forgotten. You will be missed. Rest Easy”
Magic Johnson, who appeared in an AIDS awareness video Warner directed, wrote on X, “Cookie and I are sad to hear about the passing of our dear friend Malcolm-Jamal Warner. We were both super fans of the hit Cosby Show and continued to follow his career on shows like Malcolm and Eddie and The Resident. Every time I ran into Malcolm, we would have deep and fun conversations about basketball, life, and business. He will truly be missed. Cookie and I are praying his family and close friends during this difficult time.”
In a statement, Sherri Shepherd said she was “completely devastated” over the death of Warner, who was her friend and played her husband on her self-titled sitcom, bringing “much laughter and gravitas” to the role.
“He also made two appearances on my talk show Sherri, most recently in April to promote his series Alert: Missing Persons Unit,” Shepherd said. “As someone who grew up on TV, Malcolm remained one of the most-grounded people I’ve ever met in our business. To know Malcolm was to know a renaissance man that possessed humor, grace, humility and deep cultural appreciation. He was just a good guy! His passing is a true loss to the Hollywood community. He was a proud girl dad and loved his daughter so much. To his family, friends and all who loved him — my heart is with you.”
Other high-profile figures remembering Warner include Ben Crump, Atlanta Senator Raphael Warnock and musician Maxwell.
Read on to see what Hollywood is saying about Warner.
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