Mo Folchart (Brendan Fraser) is a father who possesses a secret ability to bring characters from books to life when he reads them aloud. When Mo accidentally brings to life a power-hungry villain from a rare children's fable, the villain kidnaps Mo's daughter and demands he bring other evil characters to life. In order to rescue his daughter, Mo must assemble a disparate group of friends - both real and magic - and embark on a journey to save her and to set things right.