[1][2] Ward was a popular leading man in silent films of the 1920s, although he also played villains.

Ward cultivated a debonair but forceful air in his films.

Having made his breakthrough in British productions, he found his career impacted by a slum in 1924 that dramatically reduced the number of British films being made.

[citation needed] Ward increasingly appeared in Continental productions, particularly German films.

He was an important figure at Associated British and appears in the studio's Elstree Story (1952).