Profile : Life After Theo : Malcolm-Jamal Warner plans to direct during and after ‘Cosby’s’ last season

Next spring “The Cosby Show” gang will toss the mother of all wrap parties, culminating eight years of Thursday evening domination. During this emotional celebration, all concerned will bid their farewells to one another, voices quavering.

In between hearty hugs and misty goodbys, Malcolm-Jamal Warner will be checking his watch, for life after Theo Huxtable is about to begin.

“While ‘The Cosby Show’ has been wonderful for my acting career, it has also been an incredible training ground,” says the fellow who, only just recently, became eligible to order a cocktail.

” ... and a wonderful opportunity to propel me forward when ‘Cosby’s’ over.”

The schooling to which Warner refers to isn’t acting, but the vocation of film directing. Everyone, of course, wants to direct, but Warner, 21, is preparing to put his money where his megaphone is. He’ll helm two episodes of “Cosby” during this, the final, season. Moreover, he is also directing and co-writing a 30-minute short entitled “This Old Man” for his production company, P and J Productions.

“Part of the reason I even got into directing is because I realized as an actor you really only have so much creative control over whatever project you’re acting in,” Warner says. “I felt that, as a director, I would at least have more of a voice.”

There are the usual spinoff rumors for Theo, but Warner waves them off. It’s far too early for that. Right now he clearly enjoys the new “direction” in his life.

“Directing, as is acting and writing, is an interpretation. And I feel that I have a pretty good sense of how to tell a story,” he says.

Then Malcolm-Jamal struts a little cockiness.

“And I think that my interpretation of things is pretty, pretty good.” His immodesty has him chuckling now, lest we deem him arrogant.

Other child stars are not so self-effacing. Witness the recent rash of former child stars who have been posing more often for mug shots than head shots. Pamela Warner, Malcolm-Jamal’s manager and adviser in addition to being his mom, has stressed from his first day as Theo Huxtable that show business can be both heartless and fleeting.

“Since the very first year, Pamela has always put in the forefront of my mind, ‘What are you going to do if the show is over tomorrow?’ So, thinking that for eight years (he laughs at the sheer longevity) you kind of start preparing for other things.”

Some of Warner’s diversions have included characters acutely dissimilar to his depiction of the squeaky-clean eldest son of Cliff Huxtable. Viewers may recall his portrayal of a murderous drug dealer in the made-for-cable “Mother’s Day,” which aired a few years back.

Here’s why: “I always wanted to plant the seed in people’s minds that there’s more to Malcolm-Jamal Warner than just Theo.”

And there’s plenty more in making it calling the shots on a movie set than just having been a star on the tube for the better part of a decade. One must possess some skill, a good portion of luck and--this is crucial--contacts.

And Warner has a dilly of a contact.

“He’s been very supportive and has been there over the years,” praises Warner of probably his most significant ally, Brandon Tartikoff. The erstwhile NBC chief now heads up Paramount’s motion picture division and has gone so far as to set up offices for the young man’s production entity.

“I see a strong relationship in our future,” Warner says.

Asked his views on the “Boyz N the Hood” phenomenon and creators of movies who happen to be black, Warner said, “It’s hard to say ... We’ve seen this before. We’ve seen an era of black filmmakers in the ‘70s and you always have to ask, one, ‘What happened?’ and, two, ‘Is that going to happen again?’ ”

Warner is especially chagrined that critical notices, raves or otherwise, are quick to point out if the film in question has been championed by a person of color.

“I think what is fair, or unfair, depending on how you look at it, is that black films as a whole are judged on a different scale than your other films,” he says.

“You look at any reviews of most black films and it’ll say, ‘this is a great black film.’ And I think it’s unfair that there’s a different yardstick to measure black films to other films. ‘Boyz N the Hood’ is a great film. Period.”

“The Cosby Show” airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on NBC.