Michaela Jean Burton[1] is an American actress, cosplayer and host. She is known for her contributions in the gaming space, having hosted for Achievement Hunter, The Know, the Overwatch League and voicing a character in 100ft Robot Golf.

Mica Burton
Burton in 2016
Born
Michaela Jean Burton

Other namesMichaela Jean Burton
Occupations
  • Actress
  • cosplayer
  • host
Years active2015–present
FatherLeVar Burton

Burton has been referred to as a "nerd renaissance woman" by The New York Times[2] and has been noted as one of only a few professional black cosplayers by Essence.[3]

Career

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Acting

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In 2015, Burton portrayed the role of Jules in the film Lazer Team (2015).[4] She also briefly appeared in The Eleven Little Roosters (2017).[citation needed]

She voiced Vahni in 100ft Robot Golf (2016).[5] Burton is known for her roles in actual play RPG web shows such as Wizards of the Coast's Destiny & Doom (2017)[6] and Nights of Eveningstar (2020).[7][8] Burton also guest starred in Critical Role's second campaign[9][10] and in L.A. by Night.[11]

Burton plays ensign Alandra La Forge, the daughter of Burton's father's character, Geordi La Forge, in the third season of Star Trek: Picard.[12]

Cosplay

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Burton began cosplaying in high school after attending a convention with a friend.[3][13] She was commissioned by Riot Games to create League of Legends cosplay in 2019.[14] She has also received praise for cosplays of characters from The Legend of Zelda.[15][16]

Hosting

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Burton, who had been a fan of the company since she was a child, joined Rooster Teeth in 2016 after meeting the founders and other employees.[3] She began as a host in the gaming division Achievement Hunter,[4] but later moved to the entertainment news division The Know.[17] She left Rooster Teeth in 2018, stating in 2020 that this was due to racial issues at the company.[18]

In 2019, Burton joined the Overwatch League as a "League Insider", conducting interviews with the players.[19] She left in 2020.[20]

Burton has hosted multiple Dungeons & Dragons events for Wizards of the Coast such as D&D Live 2019: The Descent[21][22] and D&D Live 2021.[23] Burton began cohosting the web series Critter Hug in 2020 for Critical Role Productions.[24][25]

She was a speaker at Ubisoft's monthly Black Game Pros event in 2020.[26] She hosted a cosplay competition at Glitchcon 2020.[27][28] Burton was a cohost for a Star Trek anniversary stream in 2020[29] and multiple Star Trek streams on Paramount+ in 2021.[30][31]

Burton hosted The PC Gaming Show during E3 2021[32] and during Summer Game Fest 2022.[33] She cohosted an episode of 10 Minute Power Hour (10MPH) with the Game Grumps, entitled “HEDBANZ… but it’s making us doubt our sense of self…w/Mica Burton!” The episode was published on March 18, 2024.

Personal life

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Burton is the daughter of makeup artist Stephanie Cozart-Burton and actor LeVar Burton.[34]

Burton graduated from the University of Michigan in 2016 with a BFA in acting.[3]

She is bisexual.[35][2]

Filmography

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Live-action filmography

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List of live-action performances
Year Title Role(s) Notes Source
2005 Reading Rainbow Self Film [36]
2015 Lazer Team Jules Film [4]
2016–2017 Achievement Hunter Herself Web Series; cast and host [4][37]
2017–2018 The Know Herself Web Series; co-host [17][38]
2017 Destiny & Doom Freyja Varondal RPG Web Series; main role [6]
2018 "Danny Don't You Know" Concert Fan Music Video; Ninja Sex Party
2018–2019 Game the Game Herself Web series; 3 episodes [39][40][41]
2019 Critical Role (Campaign 2) Reani Web series; 3 episodes [9][10]
Pub Draw Herself Web Series; episode: "Draw Reani with Mica Burton!" [42]
2020–2021 L.A. by Night Delilah Web series; 2 episodes [11][43]
Narrative Telephone Herself Web series; 2 episodes [44][45]
Critter Hug Herself Web series; co-host [24][25]
2020–2022 Nights of Eveningstar Azara Mithras Web series; main role [7][8][46]
2021 Diablo One-Shot Indra Web Event for BlizzCon [47][48]
D&D Strixhaven - Curriculum Of Chaos Web Event for Roll20Con [49][50]
2023 Star Trek: Picard Ensign Alandra La Forge TV series; recurring role [51]
The Ready Room Herself Episode: "The Bounty"
2024 Dirty Laundry Herself Web series; 1 episode

Voice-over filmography

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List of voice-over performances
Year Title Role(s) Notes Source
2016 100ft Robot Golf Vahni Video game [5]

References

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  1. ^ Henry, Ben (July 10, 2019). "Here Are The Red Carpet Pictures From "The Lion King"". BuzzFeed. Archived from the original on July 29, 2024. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Bradley, Adam (March 24, 2021). "The Black Nerds Redefining the Culture". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on April 25, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d Sy Savane, Erikka (June 1, 2017). "This Black Cosplayer Is On A Mission To Banish Nerd Culture Stereotypes". Essence. Archived from the original on September 21, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d Erwin, Chase (July 5, 2016). "RTX Marks the Spot for Gamers Who Give Back". spectrumlocalnews.com. Archived from the original on July 20, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "100ft Robot Golf (Game)". Giant Bomb. October 10, 2016. Archived from the original on July 30, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Destiny & Doom". Dungeons & Dragons. September 29, 2017. Archived from the original on July 11, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  7. ^ a b "A lot has changed since we announced D&D Presents: TORCH. Unfortunately, we won't be starting a TORCH weekly stream as planned. However, the cast and crew are eager to bring you a game to watch during this extended time at home, so today we are announcing Nights of #Eveningstar". Twitter. Dungeons & Dragons. July 15, 2020. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved July 7, 2021.
  8. ^ a b "Nights of Eveningstar". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on July 11, 2021. Retrieved July 8, 2021.
  9. ^ a b "Critical Role: Guest Stars' Characters, Explained". CBR. June 25, 2020. Archived from the original on December 2, 2020. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  10. ^ a b Hoffer, Christian (August 4, 2019). "Mica Burton to Guest Star on Critical Role". Comicbook.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2024. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
  11. ^ a b "More Than Human". L.A. by Night. Season 4. Episode 1. February 7, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  12. ^ Coley, Samantha (October 8, 2022). "'Star Trek: Picard' Season 3 Introduces Mica Burton and Ashlei Sharpe Chestnut as Geordi's Daughters". Collider. Archived from the original on July 29, 2024. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
  13. ^ "Mica Burton Is A Famous Black Girl Cosplayer & We Love It!". MadameNoire. June 13, 2017. Archived from the original on September 10, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
  14. ^ "Riot commissions the perfect True Damage cosplay to celebrate LoL Worlds". Dexerto. October 31, 2019. Archived from the original on July 20, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  15. ^ "Nintendo "forget" 'Zeldas 35th anniversary, so fans honour it online instead". NME. February 22, 2021. Archived from the original on September 1, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  16. ^ "The Legend Of Zelda: 10 Best Zelda Cosplays That Look Just Like The Game". TheGamer. November 12, 2019. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  17. ^ a b "Destiny & Doom". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on July 11, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  18. ^ Gallaga, Omar L. (September 25, 2020). "How Austin's Rooster Teeth remade its annual convention to fit a COVID-19 world". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  19. ^ "Overwatch League Season 2 talent lineup features surprising changes". Dexerto. February 6, 2019. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  20. ^ O'Dwyer, Samuel (February 7, 2020). "OWL's Mica and Danny leave ahead of 2020 season, Achilios and Wolf return". Dot Esports. Archived from the original on July 22, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  21. ^ Sheehan, Gavin (May 10, 2019). "D&D Pulls Jared Knabenbauer and Holly Conrad From D&D Live 2019". Bleeding Cool News And Rumors. Archived from the original on July 26, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  22. ^ "D&D Live: The Descent to Kick Off With Live Relics & Rarities Show". 411MANIA. May 13, 2019. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  23. ^ "Three More Casts Revealed for D&D Live 2021 Includes Patton Oswalt, Tiffany Haddish, Seth Green, and More". GeekTyrant. July 9, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  24. ^ a b "The First Episode of CRITTER HUG from CRITICAL ROLE is Now Available to Highlight Members of the Tabletop Community". GeekTyrant. May 4, 2020. Archived from the original on July 29, 2024. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  25. ^ a b Bloom, David (May 4, 2020). "Critical Role Pushed To New Path For Its Pandemic Programming". Forbes. Archived from the original on November 6, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  26. ^ Parlock, Joe (June 22, 2020). "Ubisoft Is Hosting An Online Black Game Pros Event Next Month For People Of Color In The Games Industry". Forbes. Archived from the original on July 29, 2024. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  27. ^ "Cosplayers Compete In GlitchCon Cosplay Competition". Cosplay Central. November 16, 2020. Archived from the original on September 1, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  28. ^ Sheehan, Gavin (November 9, 2020). "Twitch Announces GlitchCon As A Virtual TwitchCon Replacement". Bleeding Cool News And Rumors. Archived from the original on September 1, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  29. ^ Vary, Adam B. (September 8, 2020). "Star Trek Day: 'Discovery' Season 3 Trailer, Podcast Series Part of Anniversary Celebration". Variety. Archived from the original on July 30, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
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  31. ^ "How to Watch 'Star Trek Day' | Entertainment Tonight". www.etonline.com. September 8, 2021. Archived from the original on September 9, 2021. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
  32. ^ Lahti, Evan (June 11, 2021). "Meet the hosts for this year's PC Gaming Show at E3". pcgamer. Archived from the original on July 29, 2024. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  33. ^ "PC Gaming Show 2022 set for June 12". Gematsu. May 19, 2022. Archived from the original on July 29, 2024. Retrieved June 12, 2022.
  34. ^ "LeVar Burton's daughter hilariously trolls his 'Jeopardy' hosting debut". EW.com. Archived from the original on September 29, 2022. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  35. ^ Strudwick, Patrick (September 23, 2015). "These Bisexual People Are Taking Selfies To Celebrate #BiVisibilityDay". BuzzFeed News. Archived from the original on August 31, 2021. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  36. ^ Cite error: The named reference Reading Rainbow was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  37. ^ Hadyniak, Kyle (June 18, 2016). "LeVar Burton Reveals Fondness for Video Games, VR Opportunities". Treknews. Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2020.
  38. ^ "Crunchyroll Expo Adds Hiroshi Yoshimura, Keita Iizuka, Ronald Kelts, and Mica Burton to Guest List". Crunchyroll. August 17, 2017. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  39. ^ "Disney Villainous". Nerdist. July 19, 2018. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  40. ^ "Western Legends". Game the Game. October 11, 2018. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved December 13, 2021.
  41. ^ "WATCH: Game The Game – COURT OF THE DEAD: MOURNERS CALL". Geek and Sundry. February 1, 2019. Archived from the original on September 23, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  42. ^ "Draw Reani with Mica Burton!". Pub Draw. Season 2. Episode 1. October 18, 2019. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  43. ^ "Reign in Hell". L.A. by Night. Season 5. Episode 8=. October 23, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  44. ^ "The Night Before Winter's Crest". Narrative Telephone. Season 2. Episode 3. December 17, 2020. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  45. ^ "Mica Burton Murders Cast of Critical Role". Narrative Telephone. Season 2. Episode 4. January 21, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  46. ^ Hayes, Danielle (April 2, 2021). "Best D&D podcasts and web series, from Critical Role to High Rollers". TechRadar. Archived from the original on April 30, 2021. Retrieved July 6, 2021.
  47. ^ "Critical Role to Host Diablo One-Shot for BlizzCon". ComicBook.com. February 10, 2021. Archived from the original on February 10, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  48. ^ Marshall, Cass (February 10, 2021). "Critical Role will perform a Diablo actual play at BlizzCon". Polygon. Archived from the original on November 7, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  49. ^ "Join Roll20Con This Weekend!". Roll20. November 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021.
  50. ^ "D&D: Spoilers From The Strixhaven Preview". Bell of Lost Souls. November 16, 2021. Archived from the original on December 12, 2021. Retrieved December 12, 2021. Here's Mica Burton playing a 5th level Wizard and showcasing some spells that aren't usually on a Wizard's list.
  51. ^ Patten, Dominic (October 8, 2022). "'Star Trek: Picard' Sees Amanda Plummer Join Final Season; 'TNG's Moriarty Returns, New Teaser Drops – New York Comic-Con". Deadline. Archived from the original on October 9, 2022. Retrieved October 9, 2022.
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