Mateus Ward was born in Burbank, California, but was raised on the island of Maui in Hawaii. He is the son of an American father, producer/director/filmmaker Justin Ward, and an Italian immigrant mother, Laura Di Nardo (Laura Ward). His first role was in a live musical theater production where he impersonated Elvis, and then was offered the role of Winfield Joad in the stage production of "The Grapes of Wrath" at the Maui Academy of Performing Arts. In 2009, his family moved back to Los Angeles, where Mateus pursued acting in television and film. In 2010, he appeared in several short films and national commercials. His television debut was on the CBS network's dramatic police procedural "Criminal Minds."Ward's natural style of acting caught the eye of Director Larry Charles, and he was cast in the 20th Century Fox Sitcom Comedy Pilot "Outnumbered" with Cheech Marin and Ana Ortiz. In 2011, he was asked to Guest Star in a sketch comedy on the "Sports Show with Norm Macdonald" on Comedy Central, for which he was nominated for a Young Artist Award and won an OMNI Youth Music and Actor Award for Outstanding Actor. That same year, Mateus also appeared on NBC's successful drama "Parenthood."