Plot
Thirteen-year-old Meg Murry struggles to adjust at school due to bullying and depression, four years after the disappearance of her father, Alex, who was a renowned astrophysicist. Meg discovers her gifted younger brother, Charles Wallace, with an unusual visitor, Mrs. Whatsit, who claims that the tesseract — a method of space travel Alex was studying — is real.
Meg and Charles Wallace meet Calvin O'Keefe, who joins them at the house of Mrs. Who, another strange friend of Charles Wallace: she speaks only in quotations. Calvin has dinner with the Murry family, and Mrs. Murry recalls Alex's commitment to their research despite public ridicule. In the backyard, Mrs. Whatsit and Mrs. Who appear with Mrs. Which, revealing themselves as astral travelers. Explaining that they have come to help find Alex (who did not leave his family, but has transported himself across the universe), the three Misses lead Meg, Calvin, and Charles Wallace through a tesseract to the distant planet Uriel.
The planet's sentient flowers confirm that Alex visited Uriel. Mrs. Whatsit transforms into a leaf-like flying creature, and carries the children into the sky. Calvin nearly falls to his death after noticing a dark planet that Mrs. Which identifies as Camazotz, home to evil energy known as "the IT". They tesser to the planet Orion to seek the help of a seer named Happy Medium. Mrs. Which reveals that the IT spreads negativity throughout the universe, including on Earth.
Happy Medium helps Meg overcome her self-doubt, and they learn that her father tessered to Uriel, then Ixchel, but was trapped on Camazotz. The Misses insist they regroup on Earth, but Meg's determination to save her father overrides the tesseract, unintentionally redirecting them to Camazotz. Unable to stay (as Camazotz's evil is stronger than their light), the Misses bestow gifts before departing: Mrs. Who gives Meg her glasses to see what is really there, Mrs. Whatsit gives Meg the knowledge of her faults, and Mrs. Which gives the children the command to never separate.
A forest appears, separating Meg and Calvin from Charles Wallace. They are pursued by a tornado-like storm; Meg uses the storm's own force to slingshot her and Calvin atop a cliff wall, where they reunite with Charles Wallace. They find themselves in a neighborhood of lookalike homes, children, and mothers; one woman invites the children inside. Meg politely declines her offer, feeling suspicious. Their surroundings transform into a crowded beach, where a man introduces himself as Red. Assuring them that Alex is safe, he offers them food. When Charles Wallace says the food tastes like sand, Red possesses him through the IT, of which Red is actually a puppet.
Meg and Calvin chase after Red and Charles Wallace through the crowd, but are trapped in a seemingly empty, spherical room. Red deactivates, while the possessed Charles Wallace taunts Meg and Calvin. Using Mrs. Who's glasses, Meg finds an invisible staircase to another room where her father is imprisoned. After a happy but tearful reunion, they are dragged away by Charles Wallace to meet his master. As Calvin and Meg fall under the IT's power, Alex opens a tesseract to escape with the two of them. Refusing to abandon Charles Wallace, Meg projects back to Camazotz and confronts the IT in its malevolent, neuron-like form.
Charles Wallace and the IT try to force Meg to give in to darkness, menacing her with an idealized version of herself, but Meg embraces her own imperfections and uses her love for her brother to free him. The IT dissipates as the Misses reappear, congratulating Meg and Charles Wallace on becoming "Warriors of Light". Meg tessers them home, where Alex is reunited with his wife. Meanwhile, Calvin leaves to confront his father, and Meg looks to the sky, thanking the Misses.
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