Fans Turn on Raven-Symoné After Cosby Comments Go Viral

Raven-Symoné is facing major backlash after making a rare remark about her former TV dad Bill Cosby — telling fans she can separate his cultural impact from his ‘horrific’ personal behavior.

Cosby faced his first sexual assault accusation in 2004 from Andrea Constand, with dozens more women later coming forward with similar claims. 

He was convicted in 2018 and jailed, but walked free in 2021 after Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court overturned the ruling, citing a prior deal that should have blocked his prosecution.

During an appearance on the Hate to Break It to Ya podcast, the 39-year-old actress — who played Olivia on The Cosby Show from 1989 until the sitcom’s finale in 1992 — said, ‘Separate the creator from the creation.’

‘And that’s just where I live,’ she continued. ‘The creation changed America. Changed television.’

‘He’s also been accused of some horrific things,’ Symoné added. ‘That does not excuse, but that’s his personal [life]. So personally, keep that there, and then business-wise, know what he did there as well.’

The response online was swift — and brutal. Many fans accused the That’s So Raven star of defending the indefensible.

‘Raven occasionally pops up every few years specifically to disappoint me,’ one user wrote on Reddit. Another added bluntly, ‘Queen of bad takes.’

One fan argued that The Cosby Show’s success was the work of an entire team, writing, ‘The Cosby Show made a major cultural impact… yeah and a whole team of people made that so. We can give the show and the crew all the credit in the world, why can’t we both mention his record and discuss the show’s impact without erasing or downplaying the sh** he did on set?’

Another commenter dragged Cosby’s TV wife Phylicia Rashad — who has appeared to support him in the past — saying, ‘I hate how Raven and Phylicia Rashad have defended Cosby.’

Others didn’t hold back, with one writing, ‘Just adding to her legacy of saying idiotic things,’ while another said, ‘Raven strikes me as a mean girl, but she has a point regarding Bill’s cultural impact.’

One simply piled on: ‘She strikes me as a grown mean girl.’

Cosby currently lives primarily at his home in a Philadelphia suburb, following his release from prison in 2021 after his sexual assault conviction was overturned.

He has remained largely out of the public eye but continues to face numerous sexual assault allegations and lawsuits filed by other women in New York, Los Angeles, New Jersey and Nevada. 

Cosby’s spokesperson Andrew Wyatt responded to the latest round of lawsuits by accusing the women plaintiffs of seeking ‘massive amounts of media attention and greed,’ per CBS News.  

Cosby has repeatedly maintained his innocence. 

‘I have never changed my stance nor my story. I have always maintained my innocence,’ he insisted in a since-deleted post on X after his 2021 release. 

Since then, the once-beloved TV star has largely vanished from public life, only reemerging occasionally — most recently after the tragic death of his Cosby Show co-star Malcolm-Jamal Warner in July. 

Warner drowned while vacationing in Costa Rica, and Wyatt later revealed the two men had stayed in touch through the years.  

Days later, Raven-Symoné shared her own emotional tribute on Instagram, calling Warner ‘a big brother’ and ‘one of the most multi-faceted, talented men’ she’d ever known. 

‘He was so gentle,’ she said, sending ‘hugs and kisses’ to Warner’s daughter, wife, and mother. 

‘He gave the best advice, he gave the best hugs,’ she added.