Bill Cosby seemed like America’s favorite dad, but behind the scenes, he was a master manipulator. When Lisa Bonet became pregnant, he was furious, punishing her, and then she vanished from the spotlight. “What have you been doing? You’ve been missing,” he demanded. We traced Cosby’s twisted obsession with Lisa back to his own daughter. “I was young and scared. His kink is about control,” she said.
Now, over 25 years later, we finally understand what Cosby really did to his daughters. “Yeah, you guys, I’m married. You happy for me?” Lisa confided that she was actually pregnant. She had married Lenny Kravitz, and Cosby, who was possessive, didn’t take it well. They were his on-camera wife and children, but he still saw them as his.
When Lisa got pregnant with Zoe, it should have been the happiest moment of her life, but she was terrified of Cosby’s reaction. He said, “Well, we have some things that we want to tell you.” “Are you pregnant?” he asked. “You know what, Debbie? Never. Denise Huxtable is not pregnant. Lisa Bonet is pregnant, not Denise,” he insisted.
Cosby was the only father figure Lisa had at the time, and she had no idea this would mark the beginning of the end of their relationship. Since she was a teenager, he had been obsessed with controlling her and her image, and her pregnancy wasn’t part of his plan. Lisa was Cosby’s second chance at having a successful family. Her character, Denise, was inspired by his own daughter, Erin, and the similarities between them were striking.
As Lisa Bonet got older, her relationship with Bill Cosby started to change. She fell madly in love with 21-year-old musician Lenny Kravitz, a decision that did not sit well with Cosby, who was not pleased about her dating a rock star. Bonet often pushed his buttons by showing up late or not at all, which did not sit well with him. She was strong-willed and refused to be pushed around.
When Lisa got her first movie role, she knew she needed Cosby’s approval. “I knew it would conflict with my wholesome image as the 17-year-old Huxtable,” she explained. “I went to Bill and told him about the role, seeking his consent, which he gave.” However, when the movie, known for its graphic sex scenes and poor reviews, was released, it caused a scandal. “They simulated making love for hours with buckets of fake blood,” one review noted. This led to the infamous Angel Heart scandal, with headlines such as, “Why Mickey Rourke and Lisa Bonet’s voodoo sex bedeviled Bill Cosby.”
Cosby, who valued the power of imagery and carefully monitored it, grew increasingly unhappy with Lisa. Things got worse when rumors of Lisa and Lenny’s wedding began to circulate. “Someone close to Bill told Lisa, ‘Don’t get married. Don’t have a baby,'” Kravitz wrote in his memoir. But Lisa didn’t listen. Kravitz noted that their relationship with Cosby became tense and ultimately unsustainable.
Cosby tried to keep Lisa under his watchful eye, but by early 1991, their relationship had deteriorated significantly. “On the first day of the table read-through, Lisa was there; the next day, she was not. We had a new script, and then he told me, ‘Lisa will not be back.'”
She’s not coming back for the rest of this season, and she won’t be back next season either. In fact, she never came back at all. While we don’t know the exact reasons for her departure, we do know that Lisa was going through more than just one heartbreak. Just a few weeks earlier, her marriage to Lenny had ended. “They were really young and under a microscope. They faced tremendous pressures that I wouldn’t wish on anyone.”
Many members of the Cosby Show cast and crew reunited for a documentary, and one clear message emerged: Lisa was seen as the problem. “Lisa Bonet frustrated her television father. This is who I am. I am a sexualized being. I’m not going to be America’s princess. I’m going to be the topless, funky hippie chick.”
“She should be happy. That’s what we didn’t see. We didn’t see anyone genuinely thrilled and happy to have it. It seemed more like someone was just there. You don’t get this kind of offer every day.” While the other Cosby kids received praise, Malcolm Jamal Warner quickly became Bill Cosby’s favorite. “Malcolm is my favorite.”
Cosby convinced the world that Lisa was rebellious and unprofessional. Lisa, now an unemployed single mom in her early 20s, rarely appeared in public for the next couple of years. “What have you been doing? You’ve been missing.” “I’ve been getting my life together.” “Do you and the baby hang out with Mr. Kravitz and spend time together, the three of you?” “Every now and then.” “Do you still see your friends from The Cosby Show?” “I haven’t really seen anyone in a long time.”
Lisa couldn’t control what happened on The Cosby Show or in her divorce, but she was determined to raise a strong, independent daughter who would follow in her footsteps. “The last two years have been a recovery period. Not working, spending time with my kid. I’ve gone through lots of changes, appreciating being a mother.”
Lisa’s relationship with Zoe was very different from the relationship Cosby had with his daughter. Zoe stated, “She always tells me I saved her life. She was so young and really private.” For 23 years, Lisa maintained the distance from Cosby that she desired until the fall from grace of an American legend. “50 years in the making. Bill Cosby’s alleged questionable behavior had gone largely unnoticed for decades. Multiple allegations emerged.”
One evening, Mr. Cosby invited me to audition for a part on The Cosby Show. He had been mentoring me, preparing me for this moment. Before we went out to dinner, he asked if I’d like a cocktail. I took one sip and quickly began to feel extremely drugged. The sensation was overpowering, and soon after, I passed out. For over 50 years, he manipulated and abused women who admired him, hiding behind his public persona. When asked about his actions, Cosby tried to deflect and cover it up. “I just wanted to ask if you wanted to respond to whether any of that was true.” “There’s no response.” “We don’t… I don’t… about it.” “Can I get something from you?” “What’s that?” “That none of that will be shown.”
Many former cast members from The Cosby Show stood by him. Malcolm Jamal Warner, who played his son, said, “The Bill Cosby I know has been great to me and great for a lot of people.” The allegations reignited speculation about Lisa Bonet’s relationship with Cosby, but she remained silent, a fact that didn’t go unnoticed. Headlines questioned, “Curious silence of Cosby’s TV daughters.” However, Lisa’s daughter, Zoe, eventually spoke on her behalf. When asked if her mother had ever talked about the allegations against Cosby, Zoe responded, “She really hasn’t. Even to me, she’s just as disgusted and concerned as everyone else is.” Zoe also shared that her mother always felt uncomfortable around Cosby. “Whether he was attracted to her or resented her independence, she always got a weird vibe from him.”
For years, Lisa chose silence, focusing on her family and maintaining her privacy. Then, Lisa Bonet finally spoke out about the allegations against her former TV father. “There was no knowledge on my part about his specific actions, but there was just energy. That type of sinister shadow energy cannot be concealed.” Shortly after, Cosby was found guilty of three counts of aggravated indecent assault and sentenced to three to ten years in prison.
After years of deceit, Cosby’s true nature was exposed. Despite the harm he caused to countless women, they found their voices and continue to seek justice. As for Lisa, the rebel girl who once stood up to America’s favorite dad, her co-stars agreed on one thing during their reunion: “She was disrespected. I was sad when she was written out or, you know, taken away. She was the rock. She was the light. She was the reason that the whole thing was created.” Despite the challenges in her career and personal life, Lisa has become an inspiration to many. She has always remained true to herself, saying, “If I had anything more to reveal, it would have happened a long time ago. That’s my nature. The truth will set you free.”
