Malcolm-Jamal Warner has been acting for over three decades — he's also added music, directing and producing to his lengthy résumé. However, television has changed for The Cosby Show alum since he first made his mark on the world as Theo Huxtable. In many ways, it has been for the better. “There was a time where I wasn't watching much television because there really wasn't a lot of good television on," Warner told me recently as we chatted over the phone. “Whereas now, there's a lot of television I don't get to see because there's so much good television to catch up on.” The resurgence of phenomenal TV prompted Warner’s return to the small screen with roles in everything from USA's Suits to FX's American Crime Story: The People v. O.J. Simpson. However, his latest role in the new ABC drama series, Ten Days in the Valley, is going to present an entirely new side of the Emmy-nominated actor. Ten Days in the Valley follows Jane Sadler (Kyra Sedgwick) an overworked television producer whose world shatters when her daughter goes missing in the middle of the night. Warner co-stars as Matt Walker, the head writer on Jane’s show who might not be exactly who he appears to be. Warner was immediately intrigued by the project and his character when he first read the script. “Matt is very layered, “ he explained. “I'm used to being cast as a nice guy, and it's great to have an opportunity to play somebody who's not simply just a nice guy.”
Roles like this one challenge the Grammy-winner, so taking on the crime series was thrilling for him. “If anything, how fun it is to play someone who has a value set that may be different from mine," the Malcolm & Eddie star expressed. “Because here's a guy who is very well-qualified to run his own show but feels like he's being stifled by Jane, and that creates a sense of resentment, a sense of desperation that I, Malcolm, don't really experience much in life. “
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