Frank Walsh, a grizzled big-game hunter and exotic animal collector, has bagged a prized white jaguar in the Brazilian rainforest. Eager to sell his capture, along with a motley collection of exotic animals, he boards a cargo ship bound for the United States. The ship's course is set for profit, but the voyage promises to be anything but smooth sailing. Meanwhile, the U.S. government has arranged for the same vessel to transport a dangerous political assassin, Richard Loffler, who is being extradited to face trial.

Amidst the high seas, the situation aboard the ship quickly escalates when Loffler escapes his confines, releasing the captive animals to create a diversion. With the ship thrown into chaos by the untamed wildlife and a skillful killer on the loose, Walsh must step up from hunter to protector. He is compelled to band together with the ship's crew, which includes a dedicated naval doctor, to recapture Loffiler and contain the exotic beasts he once hunted. The ship becomes a deadly battleground of survival, where human cunning clashes with animal instinct.