In 2044, the 25-year-old Joseph Simmons works as a "Looper" for a mafia organization in Kansas City. In a future where tracking systems have rendered body disposal nearly impossible, the syndicate resorts to sending enemies back in time to be eliminated. The operation is led by Abe, a character dispatched from 2074 to manage the Loopers. These assassins kill their victims upon arrival from the future and receive bars of silver attached to each target as compensation. However, when a Looper is set to retire, their own future self is sent back as a target, accompanied by a gold bar—this process is known as "closing the loop." Failing to carry out this execution results in dire consequences.
One evening, Seth, Joe's friend and fellow Looper with telekinetic abilities, arrives in a frenzy, nearing the moment of closing his own loop. His future counterpart warns him of a mysterious figure known as the Rainmaker, who has taken control of the crime syndicates in 2074 and is responsible for retiring numerous Loopers prematurely. In a moment of hesitation, Seth accidentally allows his future self to escape, leading his employers to hunt him down. Joe hides Seth in his apartment, but eventually, he feels pressured to reveal Seth's whereabouts to Abe. In a brutal act, Abe tortures the younger Seth to force the older version to return, ultimately leading to Seth's demise.
When it comes time for Joe to close his own loop, he shoots his older self, played by Bruce Willis, without second thoughts, as he is initially unrecognizable. Joe then flees to Shanghai, where he falls in love and starts a new life. However, upon reaching the end of his thirty years, he is pulled back to 2044 to conclude the loop, but tragedy strikes as his wife is murdered during this process. Fueled by rage, Joe manages to escape and returns to 2044 without restraints, catching his younger self off guard.
After meeting his younger self, old Joe reveals to him his mission of eliminating the Rainmaker while still a child. Young Joe, torn between closing his loop and this new goal, ends up in a violent confrontation with his older self. In a bid to prevent the older Joe from succeeding, young Joe steals a map containing crucial details that lead him toward the Rainmaker, then hits the road when Kid Blue and Abe's henchmen close in.
As young Joe tracks down the coordinates on the map, he arrives at a farmhouse belonging to Sara](/actor/emily-blunt) and her son, Cid. Upon showing the map to Sara, she recognizes that the code corresponds to Cid's birthday and the zip code of his birthplace, leading Joe to realize that old Joe's intent is to kill three children destined to become the Rainmaker. As Joe spends more time at the farm, he forms a bond with Sara, only to discover that Cid possesses formidable telekinetic powers, far surpassing that of any other mutant.
One day, the tranquility is shattered when one of Abe's goons, Jesse, attacks. In a display of anger, Cid unleashes a powerful telekinetic burst, eliminating Jesse. This incident leads Joe to the realization that Cid is, in fact, the future Rainmaker. Just as this knowledge alters old Joe's memories, signaling to him Cid's true identity, Kid Blue captures him.
After a harrowing escape, old Joe confronts Abe and slaughters his gang, then heads straight to Sara's residence. Meanwhile, young Joe engages in a fierce battle with Kid Blue, ultimately defeating him. In the cane fields surrounding the farmhouse, old Joe makes his way towards Sara and Cid, inflicting harm on Cid just as Cid’s telekinetic abilities erupt.
In a bid to prevent old Joe from killing Cid, Sara bravely steps in front of her son, ready to sacrifice herself. Young Joe realizes that if old Joe succeeds in shooting Sara, it will only spawn a cycle of events leading to the creation of the Rainmaker. With no other options left to thwart the fate unfolding, young Joe takes the tragic step of shooting himself, thereby erasing his own future self and saving Sara and Cid, with the hope of altering the future and preventing Cid's transformation into the Rainmaker.
