She was a breakout star on one of America's most popular sitcoms in the 1980s and early
'90s. The Cosby Show turned NBC's Thursday night lineup into must-see TV and Lisa Bonet
into a hot commodity. In fact, Bonet was so popular that an entire spin-off series was
based around her character's adventures in college as Denise Huxtable entered a new life.
A Different World was originally a Bonet vehicle, despite her only lasting one season with the
series. She eventually did return to The Cosby Show, but was phased out of the series, leaving
many fans to wonder why.
"Denise it's your turn. I don't know what to say. I don't know what to say. I don't
know what to say."
Lisa Bonet was just 17 years old when she landed the role of Denise, the most free-spirited
of the Huxtable children on the landmark sitcom. Bonet was also a free spirit in real life,
and her personality led to butting heads with Bill Cosby, the sitcom's star, creator, and
executive producer. Stories of tension on the set between these two performers playing
father and daughter eventually emerged, with Bonet criticizing the show and allegedly often
arriving late for work. This didn't sit well with Cosby, so he convinced Bonet to join
the spin-off.
Lisa Bonet made several life changes during the first season of A Different World in 1987.
First, she starred in the racy film Angel Heart with Mickey Rourke and chose to pose
topless for Interview Magazine. Then, she married musician Lenny Kravitz and soon announced
her pregnancy, which ended her run on A Different World.
According to TVWeb, producer Debbie Allen suggested writing Bonet's pregnancy into the
show, thinking that having a pregnant college student could be innovative. Cosby reportedly
responded with,
"Lisa Bonet is pregnant, but Denise Huxtable is not."
Cosby also feared Bonet's lifestyle would detract from the wholesomeness he was trying
to portray on his sitcom.
So, Denise Huxtable got married to a former military man and showed up on her family's
doorstep with him and her brand new stepdaughter, Olivia, played by a pint-sized Raven Symone.
Bonet was back on The Cosby Show where she started, but it didn't last long, and the
actress was fired permanently in 1991.
Cheat Sheet reports that Cosby said the actress was let go because she had outgrown the role
and the material she was given. However, Kravitz saw things differently and wrote in his memoir,
Let Love Rule, that,
"[His former wife's] relationship with Bill was tense and eventually untenable."
Bill Cosby made headlines in 2015 when he was shockingly accused of drugging and sexually
assaulting a slew of women over a number of years.
In 2018, Cosby was convicted for sexually assaulting one of those women and sentenced
to three to 10 years in a Pennsylvania state prison. However, on June 30, 2021, Cosby's
conviction was overturned on a technicality by the Pennsylvania Supreme Court and he was
released the same day, according to CNN.
Back in 2018, Bonet discussed the accusations with "Net-a-Porter". She was asked if the
revelations of Cosby sexually assaulting women changed her memories of her time working with
him. She replied,
"No, it's exactly as I remember it. There was no knowledge on my part about his specific
actions, but... There was just energy. And that type of sinister, shadow energy cannot
be concealed."
She added,
"And if I had anything more to reveal then it would have happened a long time ago. That's
my nature. The truth will set you free."
Lisa Bonet is in her early 50s and a mother of three. Her first marriage to Lenny Kravitz
ended after just six years and produced her daughter Zoë , who went on to be an actress
like her mom. Bonet later wed Game of Thrones star Jason Momoa and the couple have two children
together.
"I'm Lisa. Good voice. And I'm just like -- I turn around to my friend and I'm just like
*squeals*"
While she has stayed out of the Hollywood limelight for the most part, Bonet has still
continued acting and has appeared in a number of television series since her Cosby Show
and A Different World life ended. They include Life on Mars, Drunk History, The Red Road,
and Ray Donovan. In 1998, she starred in two big feature films, Enemy of the State and
High Fidelity. Notably, Zoë starred in the 2020 TV reboot of the latter.
When Net-a-Porter asked her why she never became a bigger star during her adult years,
she replied with a laugh. She admitted,
"I don't know! I always had one foot in and one foot out of the business, so that's part
of it. But also, it's slim pickings out there! There aren't endless opportunities for women
of color."
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