Keshia Knight Pulliam Says The Cosby Show Was 'Bigger Than One Person' Ahead of Sitcom's 40th Anniversary (Exclusive)

The actress — who played Rudy on the iconic show — says it's still an important part of American TV history despite the ongoing controversy surrounding Bill Cosby

By
Janine Rubenstein
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Janine Rubenstein

Janine Rubenstein is Editor-at-Large at PEOPLE and host of PEOPLE Every Day podcast, a daily dose of breaking news, pop culture and heartwarming human interest stories. Formerly Senior Editor of music content, she's also covered crime, human interest and television news throughout her many years with the brand. Prior to PEOPLE she's written for Essence, The Cape Times newspaper and Los Angeles Magazine among others. On-screen Rubenstein can be found featured on shows like Good Morning America and Entertainment Tonight and she routinely hosts PEOPLE and Entertainment Weekly's star-studded Red Carpet Live specials. Follow the San Francisco native, Black Barbie collector and proud mom of two on Instagram and Twitter @janinerube

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Published on November 9, 2023 05:00PM EST
THE COSBY SHOW, Keshia Knight Pulliam, Bill Cosby, (1986), 1984-1992. © Carsey-Werner Co. / Courtesy
Keshia Knight Pulliam and Bill Cosby. Photo: Everett

For decades The Cosby Show was heralded as a groundbreaking sitcom depicting an upper middle class Black American family rich in love, integrity and laughter.

Throughout its eight seasons and years in syndication, it was lauded as a series that shined in the face of racial stereotypes that pervaded media in the '80s and early '90s.

While in recent years its namesake star Bill Cosby, 86, has been embroiled in controversy, stemming from numerous sexual misconduct and assault allegations dating back to the '70s, actress Keshia Knight Pulliam says the iconic show should still be held in high regard.

"You can't take away the work that we all collectively did," Knight Pulliam, 44, tells PEOPLE exclusively, referring to herself and costars like Phylicia Rashad, Malcolm-Jamal Warner and Lisa Bonet.

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Cast of The Cosby Show.

Knight Pulliam — who hosts Married at First Sight After Party and was recently featured in the Breast Cancer Research Foundation's new public service announcement — rose to fame playing Cosby's youngest daughter Rudy Huxtable. And the show, she says, "was bigger than one person."

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In 2018, after more than 60 women came forward with varying allegations against him, Cosby was convicted on three counts of aggravated indecent assault following Andrea Constandtestifying that he had drugged and sexually assaulted her in his Elkins Park, Pennsylvania, home in 2004.

Sentenced to 3 to 10 years, Cosby served more than two years of that sentence before his conviction was overturned in 2021 due to a judge finding that an agreement he'd made with a previous prosecutor voided his case. Cosby's defense has denied all allegations made against him.

Bill Cosby leaves a preliminary hearing on sexual assault charges
Bill Cosby.

William Thomas Cain/Getty 

Knight Pulliam hopes the show can still be celebrated for changing the landscape of television.

"A lot of actors wait their entire lifetime for an opportunity like that," she says. "I'm grateful I have been a part of a piece of work that has really transcended generations and that's still teaching lessons that are relevant today."

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KESHIA KNIGHT PULLIAM
Keshia Knight Pulliam. Alan Singer/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty; Paras Griffin/Getty

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Knight Pulliam says her daughter Ella Grace, 5, is watching and learning those same lessons today: "Now my daughter is able to enjoy the work that I did, and it's funny because she looks so much like me."

As for plans to commemorate the show's 40th anniversary next year, "I don't know," she says. "There's nothing that we're working on or discussing at this point, so I guess we'll have to see."