Earlier today (June 30), it was reported that Bill Cosby had been released from prison after his 2018 conviction for aggravated indecent assault was overturned by Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court. Now, people across the internet are reacting to the news, including plenty of celebrities.
One of the first celebs to speak on the matter was Phylicia Rashad, who famously portrayed of Clair Huxtable—the wife of Cosby’s character, Cliff Huxtable—on The Cosby Show years ago. In a tweet she posted mere minutes after the initial news was reported, Rashad celebrated the occasion.
“Finally!!!!” she tweeted. “A terrible wrong is being righted- a miscarriage of justice is corrected!”
Also speaking on the matter was 50 Cent, who uploaded a celebratory Instagram post a short while after Cosby’s release was reported. For the post, 50 included a poster for a Jell-O pudding pops ad Cosby was in years ago.
In the caption for the since-deleted post, 50 wrote: “My son Bill beat that case, These hoe’s be tripping. LOL check out FOR LIFE on IMDb Tv now!”
@50Cent / Twitter
While a few celebrities celebrated the news, others, like actress Debra Messing, were left distraught. “To every woman who was sexual assaulted by #BillCosby my heart hurts for you today and I am full fury,” she wrote in a tweet. “It’s horrifying.”
For her part, songwriter Diane Warren used some humor to condemn the outcome of this matter. In the post, she wrote: “Did Bill Cosby drug the PA Supreme Court?”
Before he was convicted of aggravated indecent assault a few years ago, Cosby had already faced numerous allegations of sexual assault, with many women claiming that he drugged them before having sex with them as they were unconscious. Due to various statute of limitations boundaries, many were unable to pursue the charges in court. One of the women who did has just seen the case get overturned.
Other celebrities who reacted to the news include Timbaland, Freddie Gibbs, Big Boi, Lil Duval, Ice-T and more. See more reactions below.