Phylicia Rashad: Life Beyond The Cosby Show

She was America’s favorite mom on The Cosby Show, playing Clair Huxtable from 1984 to 1992, and in real life, Phylicia Rashad has shown the same level of devotion to her own children. When her youngest, daughter Condola Rashad, now 31, headed off to college, Phylicia found herself alone in an empty house. "There was silence, and then I lost it for about five minutes," she revealed exclusively to Closer Weekly. "Thank heavens I had work to keep me together, because I really was a hands-on mother." Over time, Phylicia has learned to embrace this new chapter. "I was used to making sure that the needs of my two children [including son William Bowles III, 44] were met. I enjoyed it, but I also found all this free time for me. That was different!"

These days, Phylicia Rashad, now 69, is embracing her exciting third act, diving into a variety of new roles and projects. She recently guided Jean-Claude Van Damme as a spy operative in the Amazon series Jean-Claude Van Johnson, played a devious matriarch on Fox's Empire, and made her NYC stage directing debut with the comedy Our Lady of 121st Street, which ran off-Broadway from May 1 to June 10. Phylicia opens up to Closer about her life, family (including her Tony-nominated sister, Debbie Allen, 68), and how, despite three divorces, she feels "surrounded by love." Scroll down to read our Q&A with Phylicia!

Phylicia as Clair on The Cosby Show.

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Embracing New Challenges: The Latest Roles

Phylicia Rashad is showing us new sides of herself in her latest projects. You see Jean-Claude Van Damme and Phylicia in ways you’ve never seen them before in Jean-Claude Van Johnson. It's been a blast, not unlike the days of Get Smart! This summer, Phylicia was juggling the play Head of Passes in LA and flying to Chicago to film Empire. It was a lot, but it was also incredibly rewarding.

Still Clair Huxtable?

Even after all these years, many fans still call Phylicia Clair Huxtable. It's fascinating to now be referred to as Empire’s Diana DuBois! But the truth is, if she'd never worked past The Cosby Show, she could still say she worked and worked well, so all of this is a wonderful bonus for her.

Breaking Barriers: The Role of Clair Huxtable

When Phylicia took on the role of Clair Huxtable, she was surprised by the impact it had. It was a nice bonus. The main thing was that it helped women laugh at things they normally might have been annoyed with—especially adolescent behavior.