A Seattle native, James Ward III’s passion for the entertainment industry sprouted through acting at age four. He has since had the opportunity of acting professionally and joined the Screen Actors Guild at age 10. Ward received his bachelor of arts in theatre from USC (’11).

In 2016, Ward continued to pursue his career in communications at the Oprah Winfrey Network, leading publicity campaigns for Oscar-winner Tarell Alvin McCraney’s critically-acclaimed series, David Makes Man achieving a Peabody Award win as well as Critic’s Choice Award and Gotham Award nominations, Ava DuVernay’s Cherish the Day and Mara Brock Akil’s Love Is__. 

In 2019, Ward received the Shadow and Act “Behind-The-Scenes Rising Award” alongside Oscar-winner Barry Jenkins. In March 2021, Ward joined Netflix’s multicultural publicity team leading campaigns that engaged Black audiences across the streamer’s series, films, and documentaries including such titles as The Harder They Fall, Descendant, The Upshaws, Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery and many more. As of January 2023, Ward took a leap of faith by leaving corporate entertainment PR to pursue screenwriting full-time while segueing as a PR consultant. 

Ward’s philanthropic work includes mentoring for the USC Black Alumni Association’s Legacy Through Leadership Mentoring Program; and sitting on the planning committee for the Annual Truth Awards, a scholarship gala that honors the Black LGBTQ+ community and its allies. Ward has golfed since age seven, loves horseback riding, and has a mini labradoodle named Mercer. Ward is also a proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc.