'90s TV icon remembers Malcolm Jamal Warner 1 year after his death

Jaleel White is remembering his friend Malcolm Jamal Warner one year after his death.

The 49-year-old actor recently sat down with Sherri Shepherd for an interview, where he opened up about his special relationship with Malcolm.

“Our mothers were close,” Jaleel revealed. “You know, Malcolm was the blueprint. I mean, he was on ‘The Cosby Show’. He was Theo. My gosh. But he was one of the few people that my mom would actually let me go out with.”

For those unversed, Malcolm died from drowning in the ocean of Costa Rica in July 2025.

Before his death, Malcolm was in a relationship with actress Michelle Thomas, who played his love interest on the beloved 1980s sitcom, The Cosby Show.

She then appeared in “Family Matters” alongside Jaleel.

“Michelle was always just like an older sister to me,” Jaleel shared. “I remember Michelle talking my mom into letting me go out with him one night past curfew, which was like a big, big deal.”

“So you know, Malcolm always had a special place in my heart. Obviously that was just ridiculously tragic news when it happened. But I like for people to remember him, though, as a Grammy award-winning musician,” he added.