Troublemaker student Sebastian Valmont Robin Dunne is transferring to Manchester Prep after his father's marriage to a wealthy divorcée. The move comes with a hurdle: his current principal insists Sebastian's permanent record must follow him to the new school, threatening his chance for a fresh start. In a sharp turn of defiance, he retaliates by pulling a cruel stunt on his father's wife, setting the tone for how he will navigate this new social battlefield.
Upon arriving in New York City, Sebastian discovers the vast wealth of his new family and immediately crosses paths with his deceitful and determined stepsister, Amy Adams as Kathryn Merteuil. He proves himself to be her equal—and perhaps her superior—in both piano and vocabulary, triggering a tense clash in which Kathryn warns him that he had better not interfere with her carefully curated lifestyle.
While waiting to meet his new headmaster, Sebastian meets Danielle Sherman Sarah Thompson, who turns out to be the headmaster’s daughter. Sebastian has already swapped his permanent record for an actually stellar one, hoping to start with a clean slate. This misstep, however, will soon collide with Kathryn’s calculated schemes.
At a school assembly, Kathryn delivers a pointed speech but is repeatedly interrupted by a hiccuping student who soon causes a dangerous moment when he chokes on gum. Danielle quickly steps in with the Heimlich maneuver, sending the gum flying into Kathryn’s hair and revealing the underlying social calculus at work. A secret society of student elites, presided over by Kathryn, convenes to determine the fates of incoming students. They zero in on Cherie Claymon Keri Lynn Pratt, a wealthier rival, and this confrontation makes Kathryn hunger for a more personal vendetta.
Sebastian and Danielle grow closer, and he confides details of his past: his mother struggled with addiction, his parents split up when he was young, and his father spent his days chartering boats in Miami. He’s accustomed to living one day at a time within immense wealth. His easygoing bond with Danielle intensifies until he discovers that Kathryn’s schemes reach beyond him. Sebastian’s world collides with Kathryn’s calculated cruelty, and he begins to realize the complexity of loyalties at Manchester.
Sebastian is drawn to the household staff and to Danielle’s genuine warmth, a contrast to Kathryn’s chilly control. Kathryn, though, resents any intimacy Sebastian forms with Danielle and uses it as a weapon to wrench control away from him. In a bold power move, she entices him with mentions of twin temptations, Gretchen and Sarah, and Sebastian learns that Danielle is not the innocent she appears to be. Gretchen is portrayed by Annie Sorell, adding another layer to the web of deception.
An attempted sabotage of Cherie backfires when Kathryn’s own mother urges her to befriend Cherie in order to sway Cherie’s wealthy family into donating money to the school. The plan twists as the social currents shift, leaving Kathryn exposed to consequences she hadn’t anticipated. In the end, Sebastian aligns with Danielle and confronts the truth about Danielle’s secret collaboration with Kathryn.
Sebastian’s sense of disillusion culminates in a provocative moment where he declares, “If you can't beat them, join them.” The line marks a turning point as the trio—Sebastian, Danielle, and Kathryn—form a wary alliance to manipulate those around them. The film then moves to a charged final sequence in which Danielle presents a journal to Sebastian in a limousine, and Cherie, nearly hit by the vehicle, is photographed as Sebastian and Danielle explore their complicated relationship further. The front seat becomes a stage for a fraught tableau, where Kathryn and Danielle exchange conspiratorial glances, revealing the uneasy power dynamics at the center of their world.
Along the way, there are echoes of family history through Edward Valmont [David McIlwraith], Sebastian’s father, whose actions ripple through Sebastian’s decisions, and through the privileged environment of Manchester Prep, where wealth, status, and ambition shape every interaction. The story weaves a provocative portrait of teenage desire, manipulation, and the high-stakes game of social dominance, all played out against a backdrop of glittering rooms, secret clubs, and the pressure to keep up appearances.
