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Malcolm-Jamal Warner

Acting

Born August 18, 1970 · Jersey City, New Jersey, USA

Died July 20, 2025

Also known as M.J. Warner · Malcolm Jamal Warner · Malcom Jamal Warner

Biography

Malcolm-Jamal Warner (August 18, 1970 – July 20, 2025) was an American actor, musician, and poet. He rose to prominence for his role as Theodore "Theo" Huxtable on the NBC sitcom The Cosby Show (1984–1992), which earned him a nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series at the 38th Primetime Emmy Awards. His other starring television roles include Malcolm McGee in the UPN sitcom Malcolm & Eddie (1996–2000), Kurdy Malloy in Jeremiah (2002–2004), Dr. Alex Reed in the sitcom Reed Between the Lines (2011–2015), and Dr. AJ Austin in the Fox medical drama The Resident (2018–2023). Warner also had recurring roles in many shows including The Magic School Bus (1994–1997), Community (2011–2012), Major Crimes (2013–2016), Sons of Anarchy (2014), American Horror Story (2014–2015), Suits (2016–2017), Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce (2017–2018), Sneaky Pete (2017–2019), and 9-1-1 (2024). He occasionally acted in films such as Drop Zone (1994), Restaurant (1998), and Fool's Gold (2008). Outside of acting, Warner was a vocalist and bass guitarist. He won the 2015 Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance for his contribution to a cover of Stevie Wonder's "Jesus Children of America" and was nominated for Best Spoken Word Poetry Album in 2022. Warner died in a drowning accident in July 2025, aged 54.

Awards & recognition

  • Grammy AwardBest Traditional R&B Performance · 2015
  • NAACP Image AwardOutstanding Actor in a Comedy Series · 2012
  • TV Land Award · 2011
  • Young Artist AwardBest Performance in a TV Series - Guest Starring Young Actor · 1990
  • Young Artist AwardBest Performance in a TV Series - Guest Starring Young Actor · 1989
Show all 11 awards →
  • Young Artist AwardBest Performance in a TV Series - Guest Starring Young Actor · 1985
  • Grammy AwardBest Spoken Word Poetry Album · 2022 · nominated
  • TV Land Award · 2006 · nominated
  • NAACP Image AwardOutstanding Actor in a Comedy Series · 2001 · nominated
  • NAACP Image AwardOutstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series · 1996 · nominated
  • Primetime Emmy AwardOutstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series · 1986 · nominated

Filmography50+ titles

The Resident

2018as AJ Austin

Sons of Anarchy

2008as Sticky

9-1-1

2018as Amir Casey

Suits

2011as Julius Rowe

Dexter

2006as Rita's Lawyer

American Horror Story

2011as Angus T. Jefferson

Kenan & Kel

1996Director

Tour of Duty

1987as SPC Ben Sweet

Community

2009as Andre Bennett

Static Shock

2000as Lester Biggs (voice)

Grown-ish

2018as Darnell

The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air

1990as Eric Sanders

All That

1994as Self

Key and Peele

2012as Arthur Washington

Malcolm & Eddie

1996as Malcolm McGee

The Magic School Bus

1994as The Producer (voice)

American Crime Story

2016as Al Cowlings

Hollywood Squares

1998as Self - Panelist

Sliders

1995as R.J.

Sneaky Pete

2015as James Bagwell

Alert

2023as Chief Inspector Bill Houston

Carol & the End of the World

2023as (voice)

Shot

2017as EMT Jones

Major Crimes

2012as Lt. Chuck Cooper

Lethal Weapon

2016as David Reed

Detroiters

2017as Sebastian

Touched by an Angel

1994as Zack

The Tuskegee Airmen

1995as Leroy Cappy

Matlock

1986as Malcolm-Jamal Warner

The Wonder Years

2021as Melvin

Sesame Street Jam: A Musical Celebration

1993as Self (segment "Monster in the Mirror")

A Different World

1987as Theo Huxtable

The Cosby Show

1984as Theo Huxtable

Hawthorne

Murder in a Small Town

2024as Richard Bannister

Jeremiah

2002as Kurdy

Saturday Night Live

1975as Self - Host

The Irrational

2023as Dustin Atwood

The Cleaner

2008

Reed Between the Lines

as Alex Reed

Tyson

1995as Rory Holloway

The Michael J. Fox Show

2013as Russell

Fool's Gold

2008as Cordell

Drop Zone

1994as Terry Nessip

Girlfriends' Guide to Divorce

2014as Darrell

Megachurch Murder

2015as Hamilton Spears

Restaurant

1999as Steven

White Famous

2017as Nelson Youngblood

The View

1997as Self

Sherri

2022as Self - Guest