This enchanting story weaves together the narratives of four beloved fairy tales: Jack the Giant Slayer, Cinderella, Rapunzel, and Little Red Riding Hood. At the heart of the tale, we find a Baker (James Corden) and his Wife (Emily Blunt), yearning for a child but cursed due to an incident involving a vengeful Witch (Meryl Streep). This curse was placed on the Baker's family after his father was caught stealing from the Witch's garden while the Baker's mother was pregnant. As a result of this act, the Witch's own mother punished her with a curse of ugliness.
The Witch offers to remove the curse, but on one condition: the Baker and his Wife must retrieve four specific items for her. These include a cow as white as milk, a cape as red as blood, hair as yellow as corn, and a slipper as pure as gold. She reveals her inability to touch these items, thus delegating the task to the couple.
As their quest unfolds, the Baker and his Wife encounter Jack (Daniel Huttlestone), who is attempting to sell his beloved cow, Milky White. The Baker offers Jack some magic beans left to him by his father—beans that were originally stolen from the Witch—which sprout into a towering beanstalk. After some negotiation, the Baker gives four out of his five beans to Jack.
On their journey, they also meet Little Red Riding Hood (Lilla Crawford), whose striking red cape captures their attention. In a twist of fate, she later gifts the cape to the Baker after he saves her and her grandmother from the menacing Wolf (Johnny Depp).
Simultaneously, two princes become entwined in the adventures: one who falls for Rapunzel, drawn to her long hair, and the other who is captivated by Cinderella (Anna Kendrick), who attends the prince's festival adorned in dazzling golden slippers. Their paths intersect in a lush jungle, where they share tales that the Baker's Wife later overhears.
The story also intricately details how the Baker's Wife encounters Rapunzel in her tower. In a daring maneuver, she tricks Rapunzel into lowering her hair, only to cut it off, revealing the tumultuous backstory of the Witch's quest for retribution for her stolen beans. Rapunzel, it turns out, is the Baker's sister, a crucial revelation that further complicates matters when the Witch retaliates after discovering her relationship with the prince.
Cinderella, on the run from the pursuing prince (Chris Pine), also crosses paths with the Baker's Wife. In a desperate exchange, she receives the last bean from the Baker’s Wife, trading it for the coveted golden shoe.
After numerous trials and tribulations, the Baker and his Wife finally succeed in collecting the items needed to break the curse. Each character begins to experience their own notions of happily ever after: Cinderella marries the prince, Jack becomes a provider for his mother by facing the Giant in the sky, Little Red Riding Hood and her grandmother escape the threat of the Wolf, and the Witch regains her youthful beauty through a transformative potion. Rapunzel, who had been banished by the Witch, finds her prince and they wed, seemingly fulfilling their destinies.
However, as the story unwinds, each character discovers that their dream outcomes are fraught with complications: the Baker fears his inadequacies as a father; the Baker's Wife grapples with fleeting desires for the prince; Cinderella feels betrayed by her prince; and the Witch is cornered by the loss of her powers despite regaining beauty. When the giant’s wife threatens their lives due to Jack's actions, the gravity of their choices comes to a head. In a tragic turn, several characters—including Red Riding Hood's mother and grandmother—meet their demise as tensions and blame escalate.
The remaining survivors decide to confront the Giant's wife, attempting to navigate the tangled web of moral dilemmas surrounding revenge and responsibility. They lure her into a pit of tar, leading to her downfall. With this threat eliminated, the characters face the aftermath of the chaos and loss, vowing to rise above their tribulations. The Baker resolves to be a better father, Cinderella chooses to aid him, and Jack along with Red Riding Hood find a new home with the Baker and Cinderella.
The film culminates in the Baker comforting his son, beginning to tell their story with the classic phrase, “Once upon a time…” In a reflective finale, the Witch reminds the audience of a poignant truth: > "Careful what you say and do, children will listen," illustrating how the actions of parents can greatly affect their children's lives. The story wraps up with a heartfelt musical number, leaving the audience with Cinderella's earnest wish for a better tomorrow.
