Plot Summary

Barely Lethal follows 16-year-old Megan Walsh (Hailee Steinfeld), a highly trained and exceptionally skilled covert agent who has been raised in a world of danger, discipline, and secrecy. Despite her elite abilities, Megan secretly longs for a normal teenage life—one filled with school halls, friendships, and the simple experiences she has never known.

Confiding her hidden dream to her partner Victoria (Jessica Alba), Megan finds unexpected encouragement to take a drastic and dangerous step. Determined to escape her life as a weaponized operative, she stages her own death and disappears, believing this is the only way to truly start over.

Reinventing herself, Megan enrolls in an ordinary high school as an average student. However, she quickly realizes that navigating social hierarchies, popularity, and adolescent insecurity can be far more complicated than any combat mission she has faced. The challenges of fitting in, being accepted, and understanding teenage emotions push her far outside her comfort zone.

As Megan adapts to her new identity, she encounters Hardman (Samuel L. Jackson), a seasoned figure from her past whose presence reshapes her understanding of loyalty, purpose, and choice. Balancing humor with action, Barely Lethal explores identity, freedom, and the cost of growing up when your childhood has been anything but ordinary.