Former Cosby star, Geoffrey Owens, who was ridiculed after a fan snapped a photo of him bagging groceries, has returned to TV.
He is now seen on set for the first time in his new role on Tyler Perry’s hit drama since photos of him working at Trader Joe’s went viral.
After his interview about the difficulties of making ends meet once the ‘Cosby Show’ was pulled from syndication and his residual checks stopped coming, Tyler Perry took notice and offered him a role on his hit OWN Network show ‘The Haves and the Have Nots.’
In an exclusive interview and behind the scenes sneak peak with GMA, Owens, 57, said: ‘There is a little sense of mischief, I think, to Tyler as well as generosity because, you know, I had just said, ”I don’t think I would really feel comfortable getting offered work, you know, because of the situation.”
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Geoffrey Owens is back on top, after being brought on to a role created just for him by Tyler Perry for his hit drama the Have and Have Nots, after photos of the struggling actor bagging groceries at Trader Joe’s that went viral
In behind the scenes footage, Owens is seen working his TV magic again. He will appear in 11 episodes on Perry’s show
‘And darn. What does he do? He offers me work.’
‘I said, ”Hmm, I got something for you. I’ll write a senator in, make you a senator in this,” Perry told GMA.
‘I called him up and the next week I had written him into 11 shows,’ Perry added. ‘But when he showed up the first day, I saw him in costume, I had 20,000 more ideas running in my head for him.’
Owens says since the photos of him bagging groceries at Trader Joe’s went viral, he has gotten more offers for TV roles, and has seen an outpouring of support over the dignity of work.
Perry says he is well aquainted with having to hustle to make it finacially.
He says he even slept in his car during his career.
Owens was photographed working at a Trader Joe’s last month. The actor was struggling to make sends meet after the Cosby Show was pulled from syndication
Perry told GMA he was ‘sleeping in my car, struggling, wondering how I was going to pay the bills.’
‘To get this place, just to have seen both sides of this, has been really incredible,’ he said. ‘And that’s why I feel like … I’m the guy for the underdog.’
‘Sometimes things just don’t work out. And that’s OK. That’s OK,’ he added. ‘You do what you have to do in between to get to the point until it gets there.’
Owens says he is beyond grateful for the opportunity to work with Perry, adding that having a character tailored specifically for him has been ‘incredible.’
‘I don’t think that’s ever happened to me before,’ he added. ‘I’m really proud and excited to be part of his world, basically. He’s so inspiring.’