Cliff Gordon was an actor who played Fritz Donnegan, a fictional hero that fights villains in outer space and appears in films and comic books. The stories are targeted at young children but are still enjoyed by teenagers like Jay, who was introduced to the character by Lloyd. Jay even took Nya and Cole to see it in the cinema, although the latter didn't particularly enjoy it.
Cliff died shortly before the events of Skybound. Because of Jay wishing he was rich, Nadakhan directed the Postman towards him so he could receive the deed to his villa. As the events of Skybound were erased, Jay has yet to be given his inheritance.
Background
At some point, Cliff Gordon became an actor, eventually getting the role of Fritz Donnegan. Prior to the battle against the Time Twins, Cliff married the Elemental Master of Lightning and the two were planning to go on their honeymoon.
Decades later, she and Cliff would have a son named Jay but for unknown reasons, he left his son in the care of Ed and Edna Walker along with a key to his mansion in Ninjago City. It appears Cliff kept up with his son's later life as a ninja but chose not to introduce himself to the latter.
Misfortune Rising
Jay made a wish to Nadakhan, then got a letter from the postman that stated that his father had died. Jay believed this to mean that his adopted father, Ed, had died. He rushed over to Ed and Edna's junk yard to find that both of them were still alive.
Edna told him that he had arrived on their doorstep one day, left with a key and a letter with Cliff's address. Jay read the letter and traveled to where Cliff Gordon lived. He found that his biological father was Cliff Gordon, who played his favorite hero, Fritz Donnegan.
Trivia
- Cliff is shown to have kept up with the news and events of his son, Jay, as he somehow acquired his old ZX suit, or a replica of it, and had many pictures of Jay in his home.
- A common misconception is that Cliff was killed as a result of Jay's wish to be rich, and thus was revived when Skybound was undone. But, Gordon's death was prior to Jay's wish, and was thus not connected to Skybound's events.
- Cliff's death was not undone by Jay's final wish, as it was not caused by the season's events. His cause of death is unknown.
- Cliff plays Fritz Donnegan, Jay's favorite superhero.
- He's the second parent to have left their child while they were an infant; the first was Misako.
- However, unlike her, Cliff's reason for leaving Jay has not yet been revealed.