Pamela Potillo Reflects on Sweet Romance With Late ‘Cosby’ Star Malcolm-Jamal Warner in Resurfaced Interview

Malcolm-Jamal Warner tragically passed away at 54.

More than 30 years before his death, former girlfriend Pamela Potillo reflected on their sweet relationship after meeting on the set of The Cosby Show in a resurfaced 1988 interview published in Star.

Potillo, now 56, who memorably played Janet Meiser in the family sitcom, said she first laid eyes on Warner during the audition process and she “couldn’t believe how cute he looked.”

Their romance gradually blossomed from there. Potillo gushed Warner was “nothing like” his sitcom character, Theo Huxtable.

“He’s very romantic. Instead of talking on the phone all the time, we write to each other a lot,” she said at the time. “He writes me beautiful poetry.”

While she admitted that she and Warner didn’t see each other as much as they’d have liked due to their busy schedules, they tried to “make the best of” every day they had together.

Potilla said Warner even won over her parents.

“My mom and dad like him a lot,” she shared. “When I first told my mom that I’d invited him over and that I liked him, she wasn’t surprised. Mothers always seem to know these things.”

This unearthed interview comes after Star reported the tragic news that Warner died while on a family vacation to Costa Rica. Officials confirmed that he drowned while swimming at a “challenging” beach in Limon.

“He was swept away by a strong hangover current,” a statement released on the Caribbean Guard’s Facebook page on Monday, July 21, read. “It was all very fast and even though there were people on the beach who came in to rescue him, they didn’t arrive in time.”

Warner was “pulled from underwater from underwater without vital signs” and CPR was performed. However, resuscitation efforts were “unsuccessful” and he was declared dead.

Warner left behind his wife and daughter.

Adam Sandler, who also had a recurring role on The Cosby Show in the late ’80s, was shocked when he heard of his former costar’s tragic passing.

“Malcom was so nice to me when I was on the show and we had such good times together,” the comedian, 58, told Entertainment Tonight. “He was so good to me as a person, and his mom was amazing.”

Sandler revealed that he was 18 and Warner was around 16 or 17 when they met and shared that they’d often “hang out” on weekends and “go to parties together.”

“I’m just sending my love to the family,” he added. “Malcolm is a true great person, hilarious, smart kid and meant a lot to America.”