When her niece dies under mysterious circumstances, journalist Rachel Keller begins to investigate the last days of her life, leading to a videotape said to curse its viewers with a fatal encounter seven days after watching its enigmatic and disturbing content. Rachel's skepticism quickly turns to horror when she views the tape and receives a chilling phone call foretelling her doom in a week's time. Determined to unravel the mystery, she delves into the tape's origin, discovering a series of unsettling images that point to a dark history. Her inquiry reveals that various viewers have died exactly one week after watching the tape, igniting a race against time to break the curse.

As the days count down, Rachel is drawn into a web of supernatural occurrences involving the tape. She enlists the help of her ex-boyfriend, Noah, who also exposes himself to the tape's curse, and together they trace the video's trail to a remote island with a tragic past. Through their investigation, they unearth the tragic story of a girl named Samara, who had a troubled life and whose malevolent presence seems to extend beyond the grave. As Rachel edges closer to the truth, her own son watches the tape, further intensifying her quest to find a way to end the curse before it's too late for them all.