Summary
Highlights
Michael, an architect, faces a chaotic morning with his children playfully scaring him. He struggles with multiple remotes and his son teases him about the 'O'Doyle's one-clicker'. He promises to finish a treehouse, but prioritizes urgent office work. He arrives late to a meeting with Prince Habibu, accidentally insulting him, and is forced to redesign a restaurant to fit the Prince's extravagant demands, nicknamed an 'Arabian Hoochie house'.
Michael's boss assigns him another project, forcing him to choose between a meeting and his son's swim meet. He rushes to the pool, arriving late and confusing another boy for his son, Ben. His daughter Samantha tests him on Ben's swimming stroke, which he brushes off. Later, at a party, Michael's wife, Donna, observes that their son is starting to emulate Michael's bad habits, like obsessively checking his phone for work.
Michael informs Donna that their camping trip is canceled due to work. Frustrated, he accidentally breaks a toy helicopter with a remote. He goes to 'Bed Bath & Beyond' to find a universal remote and encounters Morty, who leads him to a mysterious 'Beyond' section. Morty gives him a remote with one rule: he can't return it. Back home, Michael discovers the remote can freeze and unfreeze people, and even control his dog's actions and sounds.
Michael uses the remote to mute his annoying sister-in-law, Janine. He visits Morty again, who reveals the remote's menu button allows him to view past moments. Michael accidentally rewinds to his parents' love-making and his own birth, which he finds disturbing. He learns he can 'rewind' to any memory. Morty explains that Michael only needs to think of a time and place to travel. Michael revisits a childhood camping memory, where he felt left out compared to other kids with RVs.
Back at the office, Michael's boss is preoccupied with his employees' feet. Michael saves a work meeting by offering Janine as a stand-in. At home, he uses the remote to fast-forward through a baseball game with the O'Doyle kid and dinner with his parents to focus on work. He skips ahead to a time when he's alone in his basement, hoping to become a partner. He quickly fast-forwards through an argument with Donna and even their intimate moments, prioritizing work over connection.
Michael calls Morty for help, and Morty reveals that every time Michael fast-forwards, his body goes into a self-piloted mode. Morty shows Michael his autopilot self at dinner with his parents, confirming that he misses these interactions. Michael attempts to prove he had 'hotter' women before Donna, but the remote shows embarrassing past relationships. He fast-forwards through a flu, waking up weeks later with a tan and a completed work model, thanks to autopilot.
Michael uses the remote to eavesdrop on Japanese investors, then redesigns their project, impressing his boss and securing a partnership. He celebrates with gifts for his family and relives his first kiss with Donna. However, his boss clarifies that he's not yet a partner, only a candidate. Furious, Michael physically assaults his boss while paused. Morty warns against excessive fast-forwarding. Michael's frustration leads him to fast-forward a year, only to find his marriage collapsing and his dog replaced.
Morty appears and explains the remote now automatically skips anything Michael has previously fast-forwarded, like intimacy, arguments, and traffic. Michael tries to destroy the remote, but it keeps returning. He avoids showering and kissing Donna to prevent fast-forwarding. He's offered a CEO position, which causes him to fast-forward ten years. He wakes up obese in a mansion, finding his son Ben also overweight and rebellious, and his daughter Samantha dating. He discovers Donna is now with Bill and realizes the remote has stolen his life.
The remote beeps for another fast-forward, but Michael pauses it. Morty tells him the remote only reflected his choices. Michael tries to fix his life, but collapses and wakes up six years later in a hospital, having overcome cancer and a heart attack. He learns Donna is married to Bill. He visits his son's new office, but is disoriented, mistaking his daughter for Ben's girlfriend and learning his own father has died. He tries to rewind to his father's death, but Morty explains he can't because he wasn't there. He rewinds to the last time he saw his father, realizing he dismissed him. At Ben's wedding, a heart attack sends him back to the hospital. He makes a final plea to Ben to prioritize family before work, then dies.
Michael wakes up back in Bed Bath & Beyond, realizing it was all a dream. He rushes to his parents, expresses his love, and returns home to Donna, promising to go camping and plan more vacations. He welcomes another dog to their home. When he picks up his phone, he finds the remote with a note: 'Do the right thing.' He throws the remote in the trash, and this time, it doesn't return, signifying his choice to live life in the present.