Celebrities Mourn Malcolm-Jamal Warner's Death

The death of Malcolm-Jamal Warner, best known for his role as Theo Huxtable on "The Cosby Show," has sparked an outpouring of tributes from celebrities and former costars.

The actor, who most recently starred in the Fox medical drama "The Resident," died at 54 in an accidental drowning in Costa Rica, authorities there said Monday.

Costa Rica's Judicial Investigation Department said Warner drowned Sunday afternoon on a beach on Costa Rica's Caribbean coast. He was swimming at Playa Cocles in Limon province when a current pulled him deeper into the ocean.

Leading tributes was Morris Chestnut, who starred alongside Warner on "The Resident."

"Heartbroken to hear about the passing of Malcolm-Jamal Warner," he wrote in an Instagram post. "Working alongside him on 'The Resident' was an honor. He brought so much depth, warmth, and wisdom to every scene and every conversation. One of the nicest in the business. Rest easy, brother. Your legacy lives on."

Geoffrey Owens, who portrayed Warner's on-screen brother-in-law on "The Cosby Show," also remembered the late actor in a statement to ABC News.

"This tragedy has almost left me speechless. Malcolm was a lovely man; a sweet and sensitive soul. I respected him for many reasons, including the fact that he genuinely loved the act of creation," Owens said. "He had the mind of an actor and the heart of a musician. He was generous, too; I did a theater project long ago and asked him to participate; and he was there for me. My heart goes out to his family," he added.

Jamie Foxx meanwhile, shared a photo of Warner on his Instagram, captioning it, "Speechless on this one rest in power, my brother."

Magic Johnson shared his grief on X, writing, "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,'" he continued. "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."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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