In the 23rd century, Earth is on the brink of destruction from an insidious cosmic evil. A prophesied weapon capable of stopping this darkness exists, taking the form of four elemental stones representing earth, wind, water, and fire, alongside a mysterious fifth element. The survival of humanity hinges on uniting these elements with the fifth before time runs out. A former elite soldier turned cab driver, Korben Dallas, unwittingly becomes entangled in the quest for these ancient artifacts after a strange, otherworldly being named Leeloo literally falls into his life.

Leeloo, identified as the living embodiment of the fifth element and key to activating the ancient weapon, teams up with Dallas. They undertake a perilous journey to retrieve the elemental stones, pursued by a flamboyant industrialist with nefarious intentions, who seeks the dark power for himself. As they race against the ticking clock of impending doom, an unlikely group of allies join them, including a priest who understands the ancient prophecy and a flamboyant radio host with crucial information about the stones' location. Their adventure spans from the teeming, vibrant streets of future New York to a luxury space-liner orbiting a resort planet, where the sinister forces closing in on them threaten not just their mission but the very fabric of the universe.