Plot

Having endured his legendary twelve labors, Hercules, the Greek demigod, has his life as a sword-for-hire tested when the King of Thrace and his daughter seek his aid in defeating a tyrannical warlord.

1400 B.C., a tormented soul walked the Earth that was neither man nor god. Hercules (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson) was the powerful son of the god King Zeus. For this, he received nothing but suffering his entire life. After twelve arduous labors, and the death of his family, this dark, world-weary soul turned his back on the gods finding his only solace in bloody battle. Over the years, he warmed to the company of six similar souls, their only bond being their love of fighting, and the presence of death. These men and women never question where they go to fight, or why, or whom, just how much they will be paid. Now, the King of Thrace, Lord Cotys (Sir John Hurt) has hired these mercenaries to train his men to become the greatest army of all time. It is time for this bunch of lost souls to finally have their eyes opened to how far they have fallen, when they must train an army to become as ruthless and bloodthirsty as their reputation has become.—ahmetkozan

Hercules' (Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's) cousin bard Iolaus (Reese Ritchie) and seer Amphiaraus (Ian McShane) tell the grim story they lived, as companions with trauma-dumb great warrior Tydeus (Aksel Hennie) and Amazon Queen Atalanta (Ingrid Bolsø Berdal), of Zeus' bastard son Hercules, hated by his cheated non-mother Hera, but focus on the unknown part after his glorious twelve works, which prove to be greatly "embellished", as monsters weren't really supernatural. They wandered around Greece as mercenary troubleshooters with a residual conscience, despite veteran cynicism. Lord Cotys (Sir John Hurt), the ruler of the outward Greek kingdom of Thrace, gets his daughter Ergenia (Rebecca Ferguson) and her irresistible pre-teen son Arius (Isaac Andrews), the legitimate heir, to enlist Hercules' band to reunite the country under Cotys by defeating the forces of his brother Rhesus (Tobias Santelmann). Having raised and trained an army of commoners, nightmare-plagued Hercules finds out about despairing trickery, even involving King Eurystheus (Joseph Fiennes), who charged him with one of his works.—KGF Vissers

Haunted Hercules, the all-powerful son of Zeus, travels Greece with his fearless five loyal companions, capitalizing on his heroic reputation by selling his services for gold. However, when a malevolent warlord threatens to plunge the kingdom of Thrace into chaos, its desperate ruler, King Cotys, and his daughter, Princess Ergenia, turn to Hercules to restore peace. Now, the odds are against them, and to succeed, Hercules must once again summon the strength and valour that once made him a myth among men.—Nick Riganas

Hercules is the son of Zeus & Alceme (a mortal queen). But Zeus's queen Hera saw this bastard son Hera as an insult, even though Hercules was named after her. As a boy Hercules fought off many killers that Hera sent to kill him. Once he reached manhood, Hera agreed to leave Zeus alone if he completed the 12 labors (12 dangerous missions). Zeus fought the Lynean Hydra, battled the Erymanthean Boar and the Namean Lion to name a few.

Hercules (Dwayne Johnson) is the leader of a band of mercenaries comprising the spear-wielding prophet Amphiaraus (Ian McShane) of Argos, the knife-throwing thief Autolycus (Rufus Sewell) of Sparta, the feral warrior Tydeus (Aksel Hennie) of Thebes, the Amazon archer Atalanta (Ingrid Bolsø Berdal) of Scythia and his nephew storyteller Iolaus (Reece Ritchie) of Athens. Hercules is the demigod son of Zeus, who completed the legendary Twelve Labors, only to be betrayed by Hera, who drove him insane and caused him to murder his wife Megara (Irina Shayk) and their children during a visit to King Eurystheus (Joseph Fiennes). Though Hercules's demigod heritage and the truth behind his labors is questioned by everyone, he does display unusual strength and skill in combat. Hercules is frequently haunted by the memory of the deaths of his wife and daughters by his hand, as well as visions of Cerberus (a 3 headed wolf).

After finishing a recent mission and saving his nephew Iolaus, Hercules and his men are celebrating and drinking at a tavern when they are approached by Ergenia (Rebecca Ferguson), on behalf of her father, Lord Cotys (John Hurt), who wants Hercules to train the armies of Thrace to defend the kingdom from bloodthirsty warlord Rheseus (Tobias Santelmann). Hercules accepts after he and his men are offered his weight in gold, and the band is welcomed to Thrace by King Cotys and General Sitacles (Peter Mullan), leader of the Thracian army. After training the army, Hercules and his men lead them into battle against local barbarians as a test of their strength. After the barbarians are defeated, Hercules and Sitacles confront Rheseus and his soldiers.

Rheseus is defeated and taken back to Thrace as a prisoner, where he is tortured and humiliated. Hercules takes pity and stops the town folk from throwing more objects at him, when Hercules mentions Rheseus' actions of burning down villages, Rheseus tells him it was not him or his army and tells Hercules that he has been fighting on the wrong side. Later in the hall of the palace, Rheseus has been chained up and left on display, noticing that Ergenia has taken pity to him, Hercules confronts her and finds out Rheseus was telling the truth in that he was merely retaliating against Lord Cotys's aggressive attempts to expand his kingdom, and, although Ergenia doesn't agree with his methods, she goes along with them for the sake of her son, Arius, Lord Cotys's successor to the throne, who is being threatened by Cotys. Cotys had poisoned Ergenia's husband, who was the king, to take his place. Rhesus resisted the takeover & civil war broke out. Now Cotys wanted to eliminate Arius to remove all challengers to his rule.

After receiving their reward, the mercenaries are ready to leave, but Hercules decides to stay behind to stop Cotys, and all but Autolycus choose to follow him. However, they are overpowered and captured by Sitacles and his men. While chained, Hercules is confronted by King Eurystheus, who is in league with Lord Cotys, and reveals that he drugged Hercules the night his family died, viewing him as a threat to his power. Hercules's family was in fact killed by three vicious wolves sent by Eurystheus, resulting in Hercules's constant hallucinations of Cerberus. When Lord Cotys orders Ergenia to be executed for her betrayal, Hercules is encouraged by Amphiaraus to believe in himself just as everyone believes in him. In a show of inhuman strength, Hercules breaks free of his chains, saving Ergenia and slaying the wolves with his bare hands. Hercules releases the prisoners, including Rheseus, and then confronts King Eurystheus, impaling him with his own dagger. He is attacked by Sitacles, who is then stabbed by Iolaus.

Outside, Hercules and his forces battle Lord Cotys and his army. Arius is taken hostage, but then rescued by Autolycus, who has decided to return to help his friends. In the ensuing battle, Tydeus is mortally wounded while protecting Arius, but fights on slaughtering numerous Thracian soldiers. Hercules again uses inhuman strength and pushes a massive statue of Hera from its foundations and uses it to crush Lord Cotys and many of his soldiers. The surviving soldiers bow to Hercules, and Arius takes the throne, with Ergenia at his side, while Hercules and his men depart in search of other adventures.

As the credits roll, an animated retelling of the Twelve Labors shows how Hercules accomplished these feats with the help of his companions.