The Cosby Show star Malcolm-Jamal Warner has died suddenly aged 54

Actor Malcolm-Jamal Warner has died at the age of 54, it has been reported by multiple outlets.

Warner was of course best known for his role in The Cosby Show, playing Theo Huxtable for all eight seasons of the series.

Police have confirmed to ABC News that Warner drowned off the coast of Costa Rica on Sunday (July 20).

Officials said the actor died near Cocles, a beach in Limon. He was caught by a high current while out swimming and his body was found on Sunday afternoon, according to police.

Warner's body was formally identified by Costa Rica’s national police, and they confirmed his cause of death was asphyxia.

Malcolm-Jamal Warner was in Costa Rica (Derek White/Getty Images)

UNILAD has reached out to Warner's representatives for comment.

Having appeared on The Cosby Show between 1984 and 1992, Warner received an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series.

There was also the 1990s sitcom Malcolm & Eddie which Warner played a huge role in, while he most recently appeared in the Fox medical drama The Resident.

The Cosby Show star sat down with People in 2023 to discuss the legacy it had left 30 years after its conclusion.

Warner said: "What made it so groundbreaking was its universality. NBC initially saw it as a show about an upper-middle-class Black family. Mr. [Bill] Cosby diligently impressed upon them that the show was about an upper-middle-class family that happened to be Black."

Because of Cosby's legal issues, which saw a sexual assault conviction overturned by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court in June 2021, the show's reputation was somewhat tarnished.

The actor has died aged 54 (FOX via Getty Images)

Touching on that in the same interview, Warner said: "Regardless of how some people may feel about the show now, I'm still proud of the legacy and having been a part of such an iconic show that had such a profound impact on - first and foremost, Black culture - but also American culture."

He added: "I know I can speak for all the cast when I say The Cosby Show is something that we are all still very proud of.

"We share a unique experience that keeps us lovingly bonded no matter how much time goes between seeing or hearing from each other."