Geoffrey Owens makes SAG Awards cameo after Trader Joe's job-shaming

Geoffrey Owens is letting it be known that he is still a proud actor, after a photo went viral this fall of him working at a Trader Joe’s to make ends meet between gigs.

The Cosby Show alum made an appearance during the Screen Actors Guild Awards opening segment on Sunday, where he got the opportunity to make a quick statement about his stint at the grocery store — and how it all worked out in his favor.

“So, somewhere in the middle of the road of my life, I found myself in the dark wood of unemployment and debt,” Owens said. “But instead of switching careers like a sane person, I took a job at a local Trader Joe’s to see if I could hang in there with my career. And, um, it’s actually worked out pretty well. I’m Geoffrey Owens and I am an actor.”

Reactions online were overwhelmingly positive:

Owens famously played Elvin Tibideaux on The Cosby Show, before making appearances in a number of other shows.

After the photo of Owens bagging groceries was critiqued, it led people to realize the struggle that many actors face in regard to the unstable nature of their careers. Many other actors came to Owens’s defense and shared their own stories of interim jobs. Ultimately, Tyler Perry cast Owens in an OWN series called The Haves and the Have Nots.

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