Plot
In Seattle, teenager Andrew Detmer is bullied in school and abused by his alcoholic father Richard, and his mother Karen has cancer. The family struggles with medical debt after Richard loses his firefighter job due to an injury. Andrew’s only friend is his cousin Matt Garetty. Inspired by Matt's girlfriend Casey, he buys a camera to make a video diary of his life.
Matt invites Andrew to a party to help him mingle, but he leaves after his filming causes an altercation with another attendee. Popular student Steve Montgomery asks Andrew to record a large hole he and Matt found in the woods. They go down the hole and find a glowing crystalline object. The object suddenly reacts violently, and the camera shorts out.
A few days later, Andrew, Matt, and Steve develop telekinetic abilities, suffering nosebleeds when overexerting. Unable to revisit the hole after authorities close it, they use their powers for pranks, but after Andrew accidentally pushes a rude motorist into a lake, the trio agree on Matt's suggestion to exercise restraint when using their powers, especially against living beings.
After Steve discovers that the trio can fly, they agree to travel around the world together after graduation, with Andrew especially eager to visit Tibet. Steve persuades Andrew to use his powers for a magic act at the school talent show, impressing their classmates. Andrew enjoys his new popularity at a house party, but the night ends badly when he drunkenly vomits on a classmate he intended to have sex with, and Steve accidentally offends him while trying to lighten the mood.
After discovering Andrew’s hidden camera, Richard confronts him, believing he has squandered money meant for school and for Karen's medical treatments. The confrontation escalates until Andrew loses control and uses his emerging powers against Richard, resulting in a violent altercation that forces him to flee his home. Overwhelmed with emotion, he flies into a thunderstorm, where Steve manages to find him. Despite Andrew's frustration and desire for solitude, Steve refuses to leave his side, but is suddenly struck and killed by lightning, leaving Andrew devastated.
At Steve's funeral, tensions rise as Matt confronts Andrew about the incident. Andrew, feeling guilt and anger, denies any responsibility and escapes without providing answers. Later, he visits Steve's grave in private, pleading for forgiveness.
In the aftermath of the party, Andrew faces social ostracism again. Fueled by a newfound sense of power, he retaliates against a bully using his telekinetic abilities, and begins to see himself as an apex predator—stronger and justified in his aggression. Matt attempts to warn Andrew of the consequences, but their argument escalates into a fight. Andrew overpowers Matt, demanding he stay out of his life and forcing him to fly away.
Desperate to save his ailing mother, Andrew disguises himself in his father's firefighting gear, using his powers to rob a gang and a gas station. During the latter robbery, an explosion occurs, resulting in Andrew being hospitalized under police custody. A distraught Richard visits his hospital room, and reveals that Karen has died while he was searching for Andrew. Consumed by grief and anger, Richard holds Andrew responsible for her death, berating him and demanding an apology. At his breaking point, Andrew awakens and unleashes his powers, demolishing the hospital room.
Matt, sensing Andrew's turmoil through a severe nosebleed, rushes to the hospital with Casey after learning about the explosion. He finds Andrew publicly flying as he prepares to drop his injured father, and intervenes to save Richard. Matt pursues Andrew to the Space Needle and tries to reason with him, to no avail. The pair fight across the city, destroying buildings and vehicles, until Andrew completely loses control and begins lashing out at everything around him. Recognizing that Andrew is beyond saving, Matt fatally impales him with a statue spear, before flying away.
In the aftermath, Matt travels to Tibet, carrying Andrew's camera. He records a final message expressing sorrow for his friends’ fate, asserting that Andrew was not inherently bad, and pledges to use his powers for good. As he points the camera towards a distant Tibetan monastery, he vows to uncover the truth about their experiences, before leaving the camera behind as he flies away.
Future
Following its successful release, steps toward production of a sequel were taken. Fox hired Landis to write the script for it, but the involvement of Trank as director was unclear. [28] [29] It was reported in October 2012 that Fox was not happy with the script, [30] but in April 2013, Landis said that Fox liked the script—which would be darker in tone—and production was moving along. [31] However, in July 2013, Landis stated that new writers had taken over to write the film, [32] and in March 2014, Fox hired Jack Stanley to write. [33]
Trank commented in 2020 that following the experience of making Chronicle, he was never on board with a sequel. While he thought the sequel script was "fine", he felt that it had "nothing to do with why I wanted to do" the original film, and he did what he could to stall progress on it. "I really didn't ever want to see Chronicle 2 happen. That was my worst nightmare. First of all, I'm not doing it. Second, if somebody else does it, then you know it's gonna be a piece of shit." [34]
In August 2021, a female-led sequel was officially announced by producer John Davis. It will be set 10 years after the events of the first film and deal with topics such as fake news and coverups. [35]
