Plot
In Champion City, the amateur superhero team of Mr. Furious, the Shoveler, and the Blue Raja attempt to make a name for themselves, but their inexperience, infighting, and dubious abilities generally result in frustration while the city's powerful but arrogant superhero, Captain Amazing, consistently upstages them. However, Amazing's prowess has made his job obsolete, and his corporate sponsorships are drying up. To create a need for his services, Amazing uses his alter ego, billionaire lawyer Lance Hunt, to argue for the release of his supervillain nemesis, Casanova Frankenstein, from an insane asylum. But once released and reunited with his henchman Tony P and his Disco Boys, Casanova blows up the asylum, captures Amazing, and prepares to unleash the "Psycho-frakulator" machine to destroy the city.
On a stakeout of Casanova's mansion, Furious witnesses Amazing's capture and informs his team. After an unsuccessful rescue attempt, the three realize that they need more allies and recruit Invisible Boy, the Spleen, and the Bowler. Emboldened, they vandalize Casanova's limousine. In retaliation, the Disco Boys nearly kill them, but the Sphinx, an enigmatic superhero, saves them and agrees to train them. Furious grows annoyed by the Sphinx's unconventional team-building exercises and antimetabolic rhetoric and quits, while the others flourish under his tutelage. To improve their chances, they seek non-lethal weaponry invented by Doc Heller. Encouraged by Monica, his new girlfriend, Furious rejoins the team.
The group break into Casanova's mansion during a summit of the city's gangs to free Amazing. However, they become confused by his instructions and condescending attitude and inadvertently set off the Psycho-frakulator, killing him. The team despairs until the Shoveler inspires them to continue. Through a combination of surprise, teamwork, maximizing their powers, and Heller's weapons, the team successfully assault Casanova's mansion and defeat his henchmen. However, Casanova takes Monica hostage and activates the Psycho-frakulator, which begins to wreak havoc upon the city. While the team works to disable the machine, Furious unleashes his powers and throws Casanova into the Psycho-frakulator's core, killing him. The others help the Bowler destroy the machine and escape the mansion as it implodes.
Afterward, the team is swarmed by reporters demanding to know their group's name, sparking an argument amongst themselves.
Cast
- Ben Stiller as Roy / Mr. Furious, an amateur superhero who derives power from his rage, which enhances his strength and agility.
- Hank Azaria as Jeffery / Blue Raja, an amateur superhero with superhuman vision and accuracy, with throwing cutlery being his preferred method of attack.
- William H. Macy as Eddie / Shoveler, a quarry worker turned amateur superhero with superhuman agility and cunning who wields a shovel as a weapon.
- Greg Kinnear as Lance Hunt / Captain Amazing, Champion City's local superhero and a billionaire lawyer.
- Kel Mitchell as Invisible Boy, an amateur superhero who can become invisible if nobody is looking at him.
- Paul Reubens as Spleen, an amateur superhero whose flatulence makes others faint.
- Janeane Garofalo as Carol / Bowler, an amateur superhero with psychic powers and whose crystal bowling ball contains the skull of her dead father, Carmine the Bowler, who died fighting the Disco Boys.
- Wes Studi as The Sphinx, a mysterious superhero who can use his mind to cut weapons in half.
- Claire Forlani as Monica, a waitress and Roy's love interest.
- Geoffrey Rush as Casanova Frankenstein, a criminal genius.
- Lena Olin as Dr. Anabel Leek, Casanova's prison psychiatrist and love interest.
- Eddie Izzard as Tony P., Casanova's right-hand man and leader of the Disco Boys gang.
- Tom Waits as Doc Heller, a mad scientist who makes non-lethal weaponry.
- Artie Lange as Big Red, the leader of The Red Eyes gang.
- Ned Bellamy as Funk.
- Louise Lasser as Violet, Blue Raja's mother.
- Ricky Jay as Vic Weems, Captain Amazing's publicist.
- Jenifer Lewis as Lucille, the Shoveler's wife.
- Prakazrel Michel as Tony C., a member of the Disco Boys.
- Goodie Mob as The Not-So-Goody Mob, a Champion City gang and allies of Casanova.
Additionally, Corbin Bleu and Philip Bolden respectively appear as Butch and Roland, the Shoveler and Lucille's sons. Television personality Riki Rachtman and filmmaker Michael Bay appear as members of the Frat Boys gang. Legendary stuntman and martial artist Gene LeBell appeared as a member of The Suit gangmen. Composer Mark Mothersbaugh appears as a band leader while Sung Kang, in his film debut, and Monet Mazur have small roles as Susie and Becky Beaner, respectively. Additionally, Dane Cook, Doug Jones, Vincent Bowman, and Dana Gould make minor appearances as superhero auditionees the Waffler, Pencilhead, Son of Pencilhead, and Squeegeeman.
