In "The Avengers," Earth's mightiest heroes had it easy. All they had to worry about was the single threat of Loki — and, admittedly, his invading alien army. But one well-deployed nuclear bomb shot from New York and carried through to the far side of the universe took care of that problem right quick.

But in the upcoming sequel, Captain America and friends will face deadlier threats — and yes, that's "threats," plural, as in more than one. At least four, in fact, as "Age of Ultron" features incoming HYDRA menace Baron von Strucker (played by Thomas Kretschmann) and his cohorts, "The Twins," super-siblings Quicksilver (Aaron Taylor-Johnson) and Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen).

All three of those characters debuted in the "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" mid-credits sequence, and even though Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch are best-known for their heroics, it sounds as if they'll start the film on the wrong side of the law.

Then, of course, there's the titular robot menace himself: Ultron, played by "The Blacklist" actor James Spader. The maniacal machine is one of the most hotly-awaited villains in the superhero movie scene, and writer-director Joss Whedon is having a field day with the character.

"I'm having a blast with Ultron," he told Empire in a new interview. "He's not a creature of logic — he's a robot who's genuinely disturbed. We're finding out what makes him menacing and at the same time endearing and funny and strange and unexpected, and everything a robot never is."

Four villains for the "Avengers" sequel, assuming there aren't others in ...

Beyoncé Influences The World
Bey covers this year's Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People issue. *QUEEEEEN!* The feature pairs well with the other MTV amigos on the list. Miley Cyrus is profiled by Dolly Parton and Pharrell Williams by Justin Timberlake.

Weren't You Wondering How 'Confident' Was Made?
Justin Bieber's producer / songwriter Soundz is featured in a short video about the making of Bieber's "

Rick Ross Will Now Take Your Questions
Relationship problems? Family issues? Turn to the Teflon Don. Rick Ross is the new Rolling Stone advice columnist and, though we were skeptical, it seems that if Rick Ross tells you to do something, you should probably do it.

Taylor Swift & Sarah Hyland Play Dress Up
Living my life like the title of a Mindy Kaling book. "Is everyone hanging out without me?" The answer is yes. T. Swift and Hyland noted that they were dressed as "a strait-laced mom and her rebellious teen daughter" during their hang sesh last night. I'm happy to play the trying-too-hard father, guys.

Olivia Wilde & Jason Sudeikis Welcome Son
The actress Tweeted out a sweet close up of new son Otis Alexander on Wednesday. The baby has "has LEFT the building! (I'm the building)," she joked. Congrats, Otis! You have two of the coolest parents around.

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Avril Lavigne honestly has no idea what everyone is all upset about when it comes to her cupcake and candy-littered "Hello Kitty" video.

After the clip debuted on Tuesday on her website and then was briefly on YouTube before going dark on the site on Wednesday, a number of media outlets charged that the imagery was insensitive to Japanese culture
. That just made Avril laugh.

"RACIST??? LOLOLOL!!!," Lavigne wrote on Wednesday. "I love Japanese culture and spend half my time in Japan." She added that she flew to Tokyo to shoot the video specifically for her Japanese fans, in coordination with her Japanese label.

While the official "Hello Kitty" is now on YouTube and Lavigne's site, on Wednesday there was a moment of confusion when it appeared that the clip had been prematurely posted and then taken off YouTube in the midst of the controversy. A spokesperson for YouTube said the service had not taken the clip down and Lavigne's rep told MTV News that it was available on the singer's site and was not scheduled to go up on YouTube until later in the day on Wednesday.

The official version of "Hello Kitty" on YouTube — which says it was published on the site on Monday — had nearly 700,000 views at press time, as well as 9,270 likes and 10,996 dislikes.

What does "Harry Potter" creator J.K. Rowling have in common with "Game of Thrones" mastermind George R.R. Martin? Aside from being responsible for two of the most widely loved fantasy series of all times, both authors also have homes on HBO.

No, there isn't a "Harry Potter" TV series headed to HBO. But HBO is getting into business with Rowling regardless. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Rowling is partnering up with the premium cable network, as well as the BBC, to adapt her best-selling novel as a three-hour miniseries.

"The Casual Vacancy," the first novel Rowling released after the publication of "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," tells a very different story and takes place in a very different setting than the wizarding world. It centers on the English village of Pagford, a quiet and peaceful place on the surface. In reality, the town's inhabitants are warring with each other over petty differences, political posturing and all other kinds of conflicts, from marital strife to class warfare and beyond.

No Voldemort, in other words, but unspeakable evils of a different color.

Production on "The Casual Vacancy" begins this summer in southwest England, with no cast members in place just yet. Could we see some of the "Harry Potter" veterans in the mix — your Jason Isaacs and Timothy Spalls of the world, if not quite the Daniel Radcliffes and Emma Watsons? Keep your fingers crossed.

By the way, if you're aching for more "Potter" action, you're in luck: Rowling is writing the screenplay for the first of Read More →

The most beautiful person of the year is headed to the jungle.

Lupita Nyong'o, fresh off of her Oscar-winning turn in "12 Years a Slave," as well as being named People magazine's most beautiful person of 2014, has scored a role in "The Jungle Book," director Jon Favreau's upcoming adaptation of the Rudyard Kipling tale. Scarlett Johansson, currently filming "The Avengers: Age of Ultron," has also joined the movie.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Nyong'o will play Rakcha, a mother wolf who adopts a young human boy named Mowgli. Johansson, meanwhile, will provide the voice of Kaa, a python who hypnotizes and eats other animals. Kaa is the second villain of the film, following the ferocious tiger Shere Khan, voiced by Idris Elba.

The part of Mowgli has yet to be cast.

It's worth noting that "Jungle Book" marks a reunion between Favreau and Johansson, who previously worked together on "Iron Man 2." Elba, of course, has Marvel experience of his own, having played the watchful Asgardian warrior Heimdall in both "Thor" movies. Will we see more Marvel movie veterans join the "Jungle Book" cast? Robert Downey Jr. as Baloo the bear, perhaps? Samuel L. Jackson as King Louie?

And here's some fun food for thought: do you think that maybe, just maybe, by being around so many Marvel Cinematic Universe alums, Nyong'o herself could wind up getting in on the superhero action some day? There's already a petition circulating to see Nyong'o as the new Storm of the "X-Men" movies, but those films are owned by Fox. How ...

Rick Ross deemed her Lil Wayne told us she "never fails to amaze me." And even Kanye West — a man who has compared himself to God — admitted that her verse on "Monster" was the best on the entirety of his critically acclaimed My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy.

But despite all that, it's been a challenge for Nicki Minaj to shed that identity as a female MC.

"I do not see myself as a female rapper anymore, I'm sorry," she told MTV News on Monday. "I see myself as a rapper."

That's why the Young Money MC has ditched the wigs and outlandish costumes and said "hell no" to anything like "Super Bass" or "Starships" on her highly anticipated third studio album. A deliberate from the pop-tinged Pink Friday: Roman Reloaded, her latest singles "Chi-Raq" and "Lookin Ass N---a" remind listeners that she is, before anything, one hell of a rapper.

Nicki's proved that several times, and with some of the greatest rappers in the game, including Eminem on "Roman's Revenge," Nas on "Champion," Kanye, Jay Z and Ross on "Monster," and Lil Wayne on a countless number of collaborations.

"I've worked with the greats and I've held my own with the greats and they respect me," she told us while promoting her upcoming film "The Other Woman." "So I should respect myself enough to see myself the same way they see themselves."

But that's not to say Nicki doesn't feel a bit indebted to them — in fact, she thanked them specifically for taking her to "another ...

With all of the fanfare surrounding the 20th anniversary of Nas' Illmatic last week, you could almost forget that he still makes new music, too. Almost. But fear not: a new album is fully in the works, and Esco has been in with some super producers to get it ready.

"I started working with [Timbaland], I want to say a year and a half ago," Nas told NPR . "I think it was the same year I dropped my last album, Life is Good, [in 2012]. I started with Tim and it felt really powerful."

Yet, as powerful as it was, something just wasn't quite right. "I stepped back from it," Nasty continued. "Tim's like, 'What are you doing?' and I'm like, 'I just need a minute to like ‒ I just need a minute to take it all in, just live a little and enjoy day-by-day stuff and daily stuff I'm doing.' It's just ‒ I didn't want to go back in the studio that quick. I felt like I needed to be inspired."

Only when Nas was reflecting on the origins of his career, getting ready to celebrate the two decades that had passed since his debut album, did he again feel the necessary spark. Particularly, he credited the recent documentary, and its creators. "I salute them dudes, man ‒ One9, Erik Parker, the whole crew over there that's put that film together ‒ because that's helped me find the inspiration," he said. "I found it.

"I jumpstarted the album again ‒ the new one," Nas revealed. ...

With all of the fanfare surrounding the 20th anniversary of Nas' Illmatic last week, you could almost forget that he still makes new music, too. Almost. But fear not: a new album is fully in the works, and Esco has been in with some super producers to get it ready.

"I started working with [Timbaland], I want to say a year and a half ago," Nas told NPR . "I think it was the same year I dropped my last album, Life is Good, [in 2012]. I started with Tim and it felt really powerful."

Yet, as powerful as it was, something just wasn't quite right. "I stepped back from it," Nasty continued. "Tim's like, 'What are you doing?' and I'm like, 'I just need a minute to like ‒ I just need a minute to take it all in, just live a little and enjoy day-by-day stuff and daily stuff I'm doing.' It's just ‒ I didn't want to go back in the studio that quick. I felt like I needed to be inspired."

Only when Nas was reflecting on the origins of his career, getting ready to celebrate the two decades that had passed since his debut album, did he again feel the necessary spark. Particularly, he credited the recent documentary, and its creators. "I salute them dudes, man ‒ One9, Erik Parker, the whole crew over there that's put that film together ‒ because that's helped me find the inspiration," he said. "I found it.

"I jumpstarted the album again ‒ the new one," Nas revealed. ...