Danny Lupo (Mark Wahlberg), manager of the Sun Gym in 1990s Miami, decides that there is only one way to achieve his version of the American dream: extortion. To achieve his goal, he recruits musclemen Paul (Dwayne Johnson) and Adrian (Anthony Mackie) as accomplices. After several failed attempts, they abduct rich businessman Victor Kershaw (Tony Shalhoub) and convince him to sign over all his assets to them. But when Kershaw makes it out alive, authorities are reluctant to believe his story.