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'Dictator' and 'Dark Shadows' also make the top five over the weekend.By Ryan J. Downey Chris Evans as Captain America In "The Avengers" Photo: Walt Disney Studios Of all the foes the Avengers have defeated, Universal Pictures may be the first to cry, "You sunk my battleship!" With another $55.1 million earned during its third week in domestic theaters, "The Avengers" held strong at #1 over the weekend as Earth's Mightiest Heroes fended off competition from three new contenders, including "Battleship." The big-budget action pic, loosely adapted from the vintage game, which featured the catchphrase "You sunk my battleship!" in its once-ubiquitous TV commercials, was a distant second with an estimated $25.3 million debut. Universal spent a reported $209 million on "Battleship," which opened earlier overseas (where it has already made $226 million). But the domestic debut for the action flick, which mixes seafaring military adventure with an alien invasion, is still a huge disappointment. "Battleship" lists Taylor Kitsch first in the credits among a cast that also includes Rihanna, "True Blood" star Alexander Skarsgård and Liam Neeson. The former "Friday Night Lights" actor top-lined "John Carter" for Disney earlier this year, which famously flopped with a $30.2 million opening weekend against a $250 million budget. Disney shouldn't be feeling the sting of "John Carter" any longer, of course. "The Avengers" is the first film distributed by the mouse house since the company bought Marvel, who produced the superhero team-up in association with Paramount Pictures. "The Avengers" has passed "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" to become the studio's biggest movie ever, collecting over $450 million in the U.S. in just 17 days (10 days faster than previous quickest-to-$450-million record-holder "The Dark Knight"). The long-awaited and well-reviewed film uniting the big-screen incarnations of Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Hulk, Black Widow and Hawkeye became the fourth-highest-grossing movie of all time over the weekend, sitting on the worldwide chart just behind "Avatar," "Titanic" and "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 2." And "Battleship" wasn't the only newcomer to buckle against the continued strength of Marvel's heroes. "The Dictator" was #3 during its first weekend in theaters with $17.4 million. The latest comedy from Sacha Baron Cohen, best known to American audiences for "Borat," has collected $24.4 million since it opened in the middle of last week. The comedian's "Brüno" opened with $30.6 million in 2009, higher than the original bow of "Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan." However, during its entire domestic run in theaters, "Brüno" ultimately grossed less than half of the $129.5 million gathered by "Borat" from November 2006 into 2007. "What to Expect When You're Expecting," loosely inspired by the book of the same name, settled for fifth place with a $10.5 million debut. The ensemble comedy has been savaged by film critics. "What you don't expect is how bad almost all of it is," wrote the New York Daily News. The Philadelphia Inquirer wasn't much kinder: "It makes one long for the comparative complexity and subtlety of 'Valentine's Day.' " Sandwiched between "The Dictator" and "What to Expect" at #4 was Johnny Depp's "Dark Shadows," a satirical take on the vampire soap opera of the same name, which teamed Depp once again with filmmaker Tim Burton and Burton's domestic partner, actress Helena Bonham Carter. "Dark Shadows" dropped 57 percent in its second weekend, taking in just $12.8 million for a total of $50.9 million. The last Depp/Burton collaboration, "Alice in Wonderland," is #25 on the all-time box-office-gross list with $334.1 million. The Atlantic summed up "Dark Shadows" like this: "Fans of Depp's past collusions with Burton will find their rewards along the way. But there's a perfunctory vibe to the goings on, a weariness amid the weirdness." The trio of Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones and Josh Brolin (as a younger version of Jones' character) are projected to have the best chance yet of defeating Earth's Mightiest Heroes at the box office when "Men in Black 3" arrives in theaters this weekend. The sequel will, of course, be aided by "The Avengers" nearly month-long availability at that point and audience familiarity with the first two blockbuster entries in the series. Check out everything we've got on "The Avengers" and "Battleship." For young Hollywood news, fashion and "Twilight" updates around the clock, visit HollywoodCrush.MTV.com. Related Videos Get Psyched For 'Avengers' MTV Rough Cut: 'Battleship'

At intimate New York listening party, singer says new album 'widened the expectations of what I can do.'By Jocelyn Vena John Mayer Photo: Mark Sullivan/ Getty Images NEW YORK — Fans and industry folks gathered at the famed Electric Lady Studios in Greenwich Village on Wednesday night to get an advanced listen to John Mayer's new album, the country-fried, introspective Born and Raised. Before the album even played, Neil Young songs blasted through the hallowed halls of the studio. Given Mayer's vibe on Born and Raised, which pays homage to the Young sound of the 1970s, it all made sense. When Mayer's album was eventually put on, it was an easy transition from Young's jangly guitar and harmonica to Mayer's own on the album, out Tuesday. The album was recorded at Electric Lady Studios, and the Big Apple is referenced on some tracks, as on many Mayer songs before. "Records are pure reflections," Mayer told the room. "I'm so proud it's out. The finish line is so far off [when you're making the record]." In recent years, Mayer has been through it all. After going TMI crazy in the press in 2010, he has shied away from media attention. Some of that had to do with the fact that he had surgery on his vocal cords in late 2011. In fact, he still needs to go through another surgery to correct the problem. But he said he plans to record a new album this summer, regardless. "If you're lucky, you get to make giant evolutionary steps from your first record, so I was able to do that. And you guys, I think, you're able to come along with that step and be psyched about that evolution and I'm excited to even go further now and start coming up with melodies you haven't heard yet," he said, referencing his "Your Body Is a Wonderland" days on his 2001 debut, Room for Squares. During the chat he explained that every song on this album is his favorite, for perhaps the first time in his career, adding that they "widened the expectations of what I can do." Additionally, after having to cancel his 2012 spring trek, Mayer confirmed he want to hit the road in spring 2013 "and have two records to pull from. ... I think I can cheat time a little bit because as you know, I try to cheat time all the time. So I think we can all catch up so that a year from now there's two records. It'll be like Born and Raised part two because there's certain things I want to keep doing." Related Artists John Mayer

It’s still expected to be the #1 North American film for the third straight week. And now

MTV News 'Idol' experts share their choices for Jessica Sanchez, Joshua Ledet and Phillips Phillips.By Gil Kaufman and James Montgomery Joshua Ledet and Phillip Phillips on "American Idol" Photo: FOX The "American Idol" season 11 top three have a lot to prove as we head into Wednesday night's (May 16) second-to-last lap. Likely winner Phillip Phillips has skated through virtually unscathed by pretty much doing a season-long homage to Dave Matthews, while Joshua Ledet has thrilled us with his gritty soul shouting but failed to show much personality along the way (unless you count that one week he wore a flower in his lapel). And Jessica Sanchez? Well, the 16-year-old definitely has powerful pipes and is a diva in the waiting, but she's still not quite ready for prime time. All three will be tested this week when they have to sing three songs: a judges' choice, a tune picked by mentor Jimmy Iovine and, finally, one of their own choosing. Though the track record of MTV News' resident "Idol" experts has been a bit spotty to date (OK, James, we get it, you have gotten it right four more times than Gil), that hasn't stopped Gil Kaufman and James Montgomery from posting their last set of secret-ballot picks before next week's finale. Phillip Phillips He threw us for a curve last week when he went for Damien Rice's "Volcano," and he's already done a DMB cover, so chances are, Phil will steer clear of anything too obvious. I suspect the judges will pick something firmly in his wheelhouse, though, maybe Counting Crows' "Mr. Jones." Iovine has a deep understanding of music and knows that the girls want their hearts melted, so he might opt for something in the classic-rock mode like the Allman Brothers' "Melissa." After the Rice-bomb last week, it's anyone's guess what P-Phunk will choose, so, what the hell, let's go with David Gray's appropriately vanilla 2000 breakthrough smash "Babylon." — Kaufman It's nice of him to take time off from his "Idol" crown fittings (Scotty McCreery was a 7 and three-eighths, BTW) to grace us with his presence this week. I suspect he'll reward us with more of the same anyway. The judges should just have him do a medley of the past four champs' singles — including Lee DeWyze's latest, "Can I Borrow, Like, Five Dollars?" — just to let America realize what they've done, but, of course, they won't. Instead, I'll say they stick him with one of Steven Tyler's songs; maybe they have him do "I Don't Want To Miss a Thing"? As for Iovine's pick, I'm thinking he gives him Santana and Rob Thomas' "Smooth," because Jimmy's mad old, or maybe John Mayer's "Your Body Is a Wonderland," since it will make his female fanbase spontaneously combust. And as for his personal pick? Dude, he's already gone deep-cut twice (with DMB and Rice), so who's to say he doesn't just cover Phish's "Icarus" and call it a day. Regardless, the judges will praise his "uniqueness." — Montgomery Jessica Sanchez It's gonna be an uphill battle for JSanch to shimmy her way into the finale. Aside from the curse of near-elimination and the fact that a girl hasn't won since season six, she's been somewhat erratic lately and her go-to big ballads have landed as often as her uptempos have flopped. The judges want to see her shine, so they will surely gift her with a big, fat ballad along the lines of Anita Baker's "Sweet Love." Jimmy knows she needs to show she can be a contemporary star, which is why he'll opt for Rihanna's "California King Bed." As for what BeBe will pick for herself, well, she's proven a tough one to nail down. She's already hit on Whitney, Jennifer Hudson, Beyoncé, Kelly Clarkson and Alicia Keys but has been light on songs by Pink, so I'm gonna suggest "Don't Let Me Get Me" or "Glitter in the Air," which will allow her to show her rough and smooth sides. Bottom line: She needs three grand slams to make it to next week. — Kaufman Six weeks ago, I would have penned an impassioned plea for her to win the season 11 crown. Now? Eh. She's never really recovered from her (near) elimination, and in her struggles, one glaring weakness keeps rearing its ugly head: Sure, she can sing, but she can't connect to a song to save her life. Simply put, she's not ready. In fact, she's yet to graduate beyond talent-show-standout status. And everyone knows this, which is why I see the judges sticking her with Adele's "Someone Like You" (since it's like the de facto emotional song of our times, and if you can't connect to it then you're almost assuredly a replicant) and Iovine stuffing something from the Interscope stable down her throat (maybe Fergie's "Big Girls Don't Cry" or a Gaga tune). For her own pick? Well, she already did "Dance With My Father," so maybe she stays in the same vein and does Harry Chapin's "Cat's in the Cradle." Or maybe she'll just do Beyoncé again. — Montgomery Joshua Ledet He may not inspire backflips or have the stagecraft of an Usher or Chris Brown, but Ledet has just the kind of big, showy voice "Idol" viewers love (to vote for just enough to secure second place). The judges can't get enough of his old-school soul thing, so they'll go retro with Al Green's "Take Me to the River." Jimmy knows Josh has the chops but not the sound radio is looking for, so he has to convince us there's a record in there somewhere, which means he'll dip into the Usher vault for something smooth like "Confessions Part II" or "Papers." Josh has made some odd choices in the past (Josh Groban?) but has shown a proclivity for songs by divas (both male and female), and he hasn't tried a single tune by Otis Redding yet. Is that possible? In that case, he's got plenty of options, including "I've Got Dreams to Remember," "These Arms of Mine" or "That's How Strong My Love Is." — Kaufman In a perfect world, he'd win "Idol." After all, he's not only the most-talented singer, but the best performer too. But we all know he's going up against a toothy white guy, so second place is about the best Joshua can hope for. The judges, being the myopic bunch they are, will keep him in the retro-soul box and give him something like Bruno Mars' "Grenade" (come to think of it, that would be pretty good). Iovine will be trying to keep him current, so why not Usher's "Climax"? And for his own pick, I have no idea, but if he wants to win, maybe he does fun.'s "We Are Young." After all, graduation is nearly here, and everyone's looking for an anthem. — Montgomery Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. Related Photos 'American Idol' Season 11 Performances