SpawnSave

Al Simmons (Michael Jai White) is a decorated CIA assassin working under his agency's senior official Jason Wynn (Martin Sheen). Wynn, in collaboration with the demon Malebolgia (voiced by Frank Welker), has been secretly orchestrating Simmons's assassinations to serve broader demonic-conspiracy objectives. Simmons learns that his most recent assassination targets included innocent civilians, and he confronts Wynn about the moral implications. Wynn has Simmons murdered by his own colleague; Simmons's body is incinerated in a North Korean munitions plant.

Simmons's soul descends to Hell, where Malebolgia offers him a deal: return to Earth with supernatural powers in exchange for becoming the commander of Hell's army when the Apocalypse arrives. Simmons accepts the deal but specifies that he wants to see his wife Wanda (Theresa Russell) one more time before fulfilling his obligation. Malebolgia agrees — but warps the terms, sending Simmons back five years after his death, by which point Wanda has remarried Simmons's best friend Terry Fitzgerald (D. B. Sweeney) and has a young daughter Cyan with him.

Simmons returns to Earth disfigured — his face is grotesquely scarred and decomposed, requiring him to wear a costume that completely covers his body. The costume itself is sentient — a symbiotic suit of demonic-tissue armor that can transform into weapons, regenerate when damaged, and provide its wearer with supernatural strength. Simmons takes on the codename 'Spawn' (reportedly a McFarlane reference to the comic-book industry term for a 'spin-off' character) and begins planning his revenge against Wynn.

Spawn's first encounter with Wynn is interrupted by the Clown / Violator (John Leguizamo) — a demonic entity sent by Malebolgia to ensure Spawn fulfills his apocalyptic-army commander obligations. The Clown takes the form of a short, obese carnival jester whose primary tactic is psychological manipulation rather than physical combat. The Clown's role is to test Spawn's resolve; his presence throughout the film serves as a constant reminder of Spawn's demonic obligations.

Wanda has gradually become aware that the disfigured stranger lurking around her family is somehow connected to her deceased first husband. The middle act of the film consists of Wanda's investigation; Wynn's attempts to monitor and contain Spawn; and Spawn's gradual development of his supernatural powers. Spawn's costume develops new capabilities throughout the film — chains that can extend and grapple, weapons that can manifest from the suit's structure, and energy projection capabilities. The training-and-discovery sequences are the film's primary character-development beats.

Wynn's plan involves stealing a biotoxin called Heat-16 — a biological weapon capable of killing millions of civilians — and selling it to the highest bidder. Wynn's customers include multiple rogue states and terrorist organisizations. Spawn intercepts the Heat-16 deal at a military-industrial conference; the resulting confrontation involves Spawn fighting Wynn's mercenary forces while preventing the biotoxin from being released. The conference attack is the film's most cinematically composed action set-piece; the practical-effects work combined live combat choreography with extensive CGI-supernatural-powers compositing.

Spawn's confrontation with Wynn ends in the corrupt official's death — Spawn impales Wynn through the chest with one of the costume's manifested chains. The Clown / Violator, recognisizing that Spawn has now killed his primary target and fulfilled his apocalyptic obligations, transforms into his true demonic form to escort Spawn back to Hell. Spawn refuses to leave Earth; the third-act battle between Spawn and the Violator is the film's climactic action sequence. Spawn ultimately defeats the Violator by impaling him with a manifested sword and detonating his own demonic-energy reserves.

The film's epilogue shows Spawn establishing himself as a permanent supernatural presence on Earth. He has avenged his own murder, defeated his demonic handlers, and chosen to remain as a force against future demonic-conspiracy threats. The film's closing scene shows Spawn surveying the city skyline from a rooftop, his sentient costume cape billowing in the wind. A planned sequel was developed throughout 1998-1999 but was ultimately canceled when 1990s superhero films generally underperformed; the comics have continued without interruption.