Carny

A large winged creature is delivered to a traveling carnival. Cap kills the man who sold him the beast, and Cap and his assistant Quinn tranquilize it with darts. The beast is secured, and the show is set to go on.

Sheriff Atlas arrives at the carnival at the request of a paranoid pastor and begins his investigation. The pastor's fear drives the early inquiry and casts a shadow over the festivities. The carnival's opening show continues as tensions mount.

During the opening show, the beast breaks free from its cage and terrorizes the carnival crowd. It rampages through stalls and performers in a frenzy before fleeing into the surrounding woods. The escape sets off a chase that will reach far beyond the fairgrounds.

The following night, Taylor and Jesse hide in an old barn deep in the forest to avoid the creature. A dog feeding on a severed foot nearby barks and gives away their hiding spot. The beast hunts them, fatally killing the dog and driving the boys to separate paths.

The next day, Atlas and his deputy locate Jesse and discover the remains of the man who sold the beast near the river, establishing it as a homicide rather than a straightforward mauling. Atlas begins to realize this creature's true danger and origins may extend beyond the carnival. The investigation shifts toward tracking the beast.

Atlas visits Samara, the psychic carnie, who explains that the beast is the Jersey Devil, the monstrous thirteenth child of Mrs. Leeds. The killer creature feeds on blood, and its aggression is fueled by tasting it. This revelation deepens the hunt and adds a supernatural dimension.

While Atlas pursues leads, the beast attacks Jesse and his mother as they drive through the forest, killing them. The loss intensifies the urgency to stop the monster before more innocents die. The living characters brace for a culminating chase.

Atlas organizes a coordinated hunting party to track down the creature. Cap and Quinn join, hoping to recapture the beast to deliver it to a client, but the plan hinges on capturing it alive and intact. The underground tension between authorities and the carnival crew sharpens.

The pursuit leads Cap to tranquilize Atlas's deputy, and Quinn stabs him to release the scent of blood in hopes of drawing the beast. The deputy shoots at the beast and it flees, but the hunter suffers catastrophic wounds. The blood trap fails to stop the monster.

The beast reappears at Cap's carnival, killing a carnie and prompting Atlas to intervene and drive it off again. The carnival is reeling from the renewed attack and the body count grows. The creature's return signals a final, desperate showdown.

Cap mortally wounds his ally Quinn to lure the beast with blood, which arrives and attacks Cap. He improvises with upgraded darts that knock the beast unconscious, momentarily halting the onslaught. The plan to control the monster teeters on a knife's edge.

Cap is arrested by Atlas after a hidden dart fragment is found in the deputy's back. The pastor then assumes the reins, knocks Atlas unconscious, and cuts Cap's tongue to prevent testimony. He plans to burn the carnival to erase the threat.

The pastor gets the beast's body loaded onto a truck and heads to the carnival to burn it, killing many carnies in the process. The blaze consumes the grounds as the world outside fights to contain the chaos. The beast's body becomes a tool in the pastor's vengeful crusade.

The beast awakens and advances toward the burning carnival, killing the pastor with its bite. Atlas regains consciousness, fights through the inferno to rescue Samara. The showdown ends at a Ferris wheel where Atlas rams the beast with a car and the wheel collapses; the monster dies, and Atlas dies from his injuries.