Donal Lardner Ward
Donal Lardner Ward is an American screenwriter, director, producer, and actor.
Early Life and Career
Born in Brooklyn, New York, Donal is the great-grandson of sports writer and humorist Ring Lardner, grandson of sports writer John Lardner and grand-nephew of Academy Award-winning screenwriter Ring Lardner Jr., who was a member of the Hollywood Ten. His acting career began in 1990 with a part in Whit Stillman's Metropolitan, followed in 1993 by the film My Life's in Turnaround, produced on a budget of $200,000, which he co-wrote, co-directed, and co-starred in with Eric Schaeffer.1990s
Following the success of My Life's in Turnaround, Ward and Schaeffer, with Efrem Seeger, created the sitcom Too Something, for the Fox Network. The series starred Schaeffer and Ward, as well as actress Portia de Rossi.In 1999, Ward directed the J. J. Abrams produced film, The Suburbans, co-written with Tony Guma. The film revolves around a record company executive, played by Jennifer Love Hewitt, attempting to reignite the careers of the one-hit wonder band The Suburbans, played by Ward, Craig Bierko, Will Ferrell, and Tony Guma. The film also features performances from Amy Brenneman, Bridgette Wilson, Ben Stiller, and Jerry Stiller.
2000s
The 2000s began with roles in Wes Anderson's The Royal Tenenbaums, the straight-to-video film Comic Book Villains, starring Donal Logue, and Julie Delpy's Looking For Jimmy.In 2007, as part of a half-day marathon of new works for Philip Seymour Hoffman's LAByrinth Theater Company, Ward directed the play Dress Them Down With Whiskey, featuring Tatum O'Neil.
2010s
In 2011, Ward and Schaeffer reunited for the sequel to My Life's in Turnaround, titled They're Out of the Business.At the same time, Ward was also a staff writer for the HBO series How to Make it in America, produced by Mark Wahlberg.
In 2018, Ward directed the drama We Only Know So Much, co-written with Elizabeth Crane. The film stars Jeanne Tripplehorn, Damian Young, and Loudon Wainwright III. It premiered at The Nantucket Film Festival. The film will receive a digital release by Lionsgate Films on 2/24/20.
In 2019 Ward was a writer/producer on the final season of The Affair on Showtime. He also appeared as "Firefighter Dan" in episode 10.
Filmography
| Year | Title | Notes |
| 1990 | Metropolitan | Role of North Greenwich Preppie |
| 1993 | My Life's in Turnaround | Co-director, co-writer, role of Jason |
| 1995 | Too Something | Co-creator, role of Donny Reeves |
| 1999 | The Suburbans | Director, co-writer, role of Danny |
| 2001 | The Royal Tenenbaums | Role of Hotel Clerk |
| 2002 | Comic Book Villains | Role of Normal Customer |
| 2002 | Looking For Jimmy | Actor |
| 2010 | How to Make it in America | Staff Writer |
| 2011 | They're Out of the Business | Role of Jason, sequel to My Life's in Turnaround |
| 2018 | We Only Know So Much | Director, co-writer, based on the novel by Elizabeth Crane |