Actors Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Carl Anthony Payne II may have played on-screen best friends on The Cosby Show, looks can be deceiving. Not everything was copacetic between the pair, at least from Warner’s standpoint.
During his recent appearance on The Breakfast Club, Warner disclosed that although he and Payne are in a better place now as adults, the duo did, in fact, have a feud on the hit series.
Warner revealed the dispute stemmed from Payne losing a plum role on The Cosby Show, which ran from 1984 to 1992. For context, Warner was cast as Theodore Huxtable, the only son of beloved television couple Cliff and Clair Huxtable. At the same time, Payne was offered a supporting role as Theo’s best friend, Walter “Cockroach” Bradley.
In the January 12 interview, Warner opened up about the casting process and claimed that the duo was up for the same role. The 52-year-old stated if he didn’t audition, Payne “would have played Theo.”
Warner said, “We’re cooler as adults than we were during the time. The original callbacks for Cosby they flew in an actor from Chicago and then flew in an actor from New York. Carl was the actor they flew in from New York. So, had I not auditioned for the show, Carl would have played Theo.”
Later, Warner said Payne’s “huge ego” heavily contributed to their rift.
“That was part of it,” Warner said. “I didn’t come from that kind of place. The way I felt then and the way I do now, you know, based on my career, if anyone
should walk around with a huge ego it should be me. And if I don’t roll like that, I have very little tolerance for people who roll like that. So we never really, we just really never got along back then.”Despite the feud, both men would ultimately make amends years later.
Payne has yet to respond to Warner’s claims.