The story begins in a remote Alaskan cabin, where Winston, an accountant who has been skimming from the Moretti crime family, hides from the syndicate until federal agents storm the place and place him under arrest. U.S. Deputy Marshal Madelyn Harris arrives to process Winston and learns that he is offering full cooperation: in exchange for immunity he will testify against mob boss Moretti in New York. Madelyn accepts the deal with reluctance and arranges to transport Winston by small aircraft to Anchorage, where he will transfer to a larger flight en route to the cities that will allow his testimony to proceed.

They board a single-engine charter plane out of a small Alaskan strip. The pilot introduces himself as Daryl Booth, a Texan living in Alaska; he comments casually that the plane's radio and GPS are temperamental. Madelyn notices a fresh scratch at the back of his head and what appears to be a smear of blood on his forearm, but Booth dismisses both as occupational hazards. Winston sits shackled in the center of the cabin and, while staring at the floor, spots a pilot's license under the seat in front of him. The photo on the license does not match the man sitting in the cockpit. Winston tries to alert Madelyn, who has headphones on and cannot hear him. When the pilot calls out that after Anchorage they will head to Seattle, Madelyn realizes he knows a destination she has not announced; that knowledge, along with the false identity on the license, prompts her to confront him.

The man posing as Daryl drops the pretense and admits he is a hitman contracted by Moretti to kill Winston. He explains his orders plainly: remove the witness somewhere remote so nature can finish the job. Violence erupts in the confined cabin. Madelyn and the impostor struggle; she is knocked out briefly, but when she recovers she pulls a stun gun and subdues him. She binds his hands and drags him to the overhead luggage rack, leaving him shackled there, then releases Winston from his chains so he can assist. Before the pilot's apparent incapacitation, Winston glimpses more evidence that the real Daryl Booth is gone: documents and photographs belonging to the dead pilot beneath the seat. He recognizes that the man in the cockpit has killed the original Booth.

Madelyn takes control of the aircraft and calls for help by satellite phone. She reaches her colleague Caroline Van Sant to explain the plane has been compromised and that Winston must be kept alive; Caroline instructs her that Winston's testimony is crucial to bring Moretti down and that a pilot on the ground will guide Madelyn to Anchorage. Caroline also informs her that the impostor tortured and murdered the real Daryl Booth. Madelyn begins to suspect the presence of an internal leak when the impostor, while bound, taunts her with detailed knowledge of her past--facts he could only have known if someone from the Marshals or the FBI had tipped him off.

The hitman mocks Madelyn about an incident that resulted in her demotion years earlier. She had been responsible for watching a young woman named Maria at a motel in Mexico while taking part in a protection operation. Madelyn allowed Maria, who was handcuffed, to take a shower unsupervised despite protocol forbidding leaving a detainee alone. A sicario associated with the cartel threw a Molotov cocktail through the motel window; Maria, handcuffed to the bathtub, could not escape and was burned alive. Madelyn fled and was later reassigned to desk duty. The hitman brings up those details to wound her, then warns that he knows the address of Winston's mother and will harm her to force cooperation. His knowledge convinces Madelyn that someone inside the federal apparatus is feeding the mob privileged information.

While Madelyn pilots, the ground-based pilot whom Caroline has arranged, Hasan, establishes radio contact and begins giving step-by-step instructions on how to keep the aircraft stable and how to execute an approach into Anchorage. Hasan also tries to soothe Madelyn; he jokes about going drinking and dancing once they land, and guides her through navigating by visual landmarks. Madelyn radios back as she and Winston pass a shipwreck on a coastal stretch; Hasan uses that observation to triangulate their position and gives better vectors. As they descend toward the landing strip, fuel levels and altitude become urgent concerns.

During the flight, Madelyn contacts the FBI chain of command to report the breach and her suspicions. She speaks with Deputy Director Coleridge. At one point Coleridge casually references a beachfront property and its payment history; Winston, overhearing parts of the conversation and recalling where he has skimmed and sent money, recognizes the reference as the same destination that once received illicit payments. Winston tells Madelyn that one of the requests for payment he recalled came from a URL linking to that beach location. When Madelyn pieces that together with the leak's knowledge of her Mexico assignment, she deduces the unimaginable: Coleridge, her superior, is the mole supplying Moretti with inside information. She alerts Caroline to this suspicion and vows to expose whoever is on Moretti's payroll.

The tension in the cabin ratchets up when the hitman awakens and, using a slipped knife, cuts his restraints. He pulls himself free from the luggage rack and attacks. He stabs Winston twice in the torso and then uses a seatbelt to strangle Madelyn. Winston, bleeding heavily, manages to crawl and remove the blade from his chest essentially by pulling it free; with the knife he severs the belt that the hitman has looped around Madelyn's neck and frees her. Madelyn reacts by firing a flare into the attacker's chest and, as he recoils, knocks him out with a fire extinguisher swung against his head. The strike buys time but Winston loses copious amounts of blood and begins to fade in and out of consciousness.

With Winston critically wounded, Madelyn and Hasan agree to speed up the approach and burn fuel faster to make a prompt landing in Anchorage where medical teams await. Madelyn increases throttle and follows Hasan's guidance, pushing the small plane to the edge of its capabilities. On the radio, Caroline checks in and Madelyn tells her she now believes Coleridge is the leak. Caroline says she will assemble a team on the ground in Anchorage. Madelyn, shaken and furious, calls Coleridge back directly to confront him. Coleridge replies curtly and then, when Madelyn accuses him, tells her Caroline has been involved in a fatal car accident--Caroline is dead. The call implies that Moretti's people, acting on Coleridge's behalf to remove suspicion, have killed Caroline to give Coleridge time and scapegoats. Madelyn, bereaved and enraged, tells Coleridge that she knows he is protecting Moretti and that she will expose him.

As they finalize their approach, two Navy F/A-18s rendezvous with the little plane to ensure the flight does not endanger populated areas. The boxed-in, low-fuel aircraft makes a rough, high-speed landing on the icy runway; the shell-shocked ground crew and emergency responders converge. During the landing sequence the hitman regains consciousness and launches a final assault from the rear of the cabin. Madelyn, anticipating further violence, shoots the attacker twice. The force of the impact and the trajectory of his fall send him tumbling out of the open plane door; he lands on the tarmac and is struck and crushed by a passing truck, his body fatally crushed under its wheels. That impact kills him instantly.

Emergency personnel rush to Winston and load him into an awaiting ambulance. Madelyn, still dazed from the ordeal, locks eyes with Hasan when he appears at the plane's ramp; he has been the face guiding her from the ground, and they exchange a brief, humanizing moment. Just then Madelyn spots a man in a paramedic uniform entering the ambulance alongside the medics. The man's movements strike her as controlled and deliberate in a way the others' do not. She runs to the ambulance and throws open the rear doors to find the fake paramedic pressing a clear plastic bag over Winston's face in an attempt to suffocate him. Madelyn reacts without hesitation: she draws her service weapon and fires, killing the assassin before he can finish Winston.

Madelyn grabs the dead man's phone to trace orders. The line on the screen is active and Coleridge's voice answers as she lifts the device. The voice on the end of the call is the Deputy Director's; through the phone Madelyn hears him talking as the connection joins, confirming the chain of complicity between Coleridge and the hired killers. With Winter's blood on her hands and adrenaline still pounding, Madelyn tells Coleridge--measured and certain--that he is finished, capturing the final evidence of his betrayal for the record. She returns her attention to Winston, who is pale and weak but alive. Paramedics swarm and begin proper medical intervention as Madelyn stays at his side, holding his hand to steady him.

The film's final moments show Madelyn sitting with Winston in the back of the ambulance as medics work; his breathing becomes steadier under their care. Winston, still visibly injured and bandaged, musters a wan smile at Madelyn in a wordless exchange that acknowledges both their survival and the cost paid to get them alive. Madelyn, still reeling from the confrontation and the realization that corruption reached into her own chain of command, gives Winston a look that combines relief and resolve. On the runway, investigators move through the wrecked plane and the scene of the attack; law enforcement begins to secure evidence that ties Coleridge to Moretti. The camera follows Madelyn as she steps away from the ambulance, phone in hand, preparing to press charges and to ensure the mole within the FBI is held accountable. The story closes with Winston alive and en route to the hospital and Madelyn standing among the responders, determined to pursue justice against the network of killers who sought to silence the truth.

At the end of Flight Risk (2025), Deputy U.S. Marshal Madolyn Harris successfully lands the plane after a tense flight, having subdued the hitman posing as the pilot. The hitman is killed when he is ejected from the plane and run over by a truck on the runway. Winston, the fugitive accountant, survives and is taken by medics. Madolyn confronts a final assassin trying to kill Winston in the ambulance and shoots him dead, ensuring Winston's safety and signaling that the corrupt forces behind the crime family will be exposed.

The ending unfolds with Madolyn Harris flying the small plane toward the landing strip after a harrowing journey through the Alaskan wilderness. She tries to contact her superior, Caroline Van Sant, but instead reaches Coleridge, who coldly informs her that Caroline has died in a car accident, likely orchestrated by Moretti's men. Madolyn, realizing there is a mole leaking information, angrily vows to expose him.

As the plane approaches the landing zone, two carrier jets escort it to prevent any danger to civilians. Madolyn communicates with Hasan, the hitman who had earlier impersonated the pilot, but he attempts another attack. Madolyn shoots Hasan twice, incapacitating him. Meanwhile, Winston, the mob accountant and key witness, begins to lose consciousness due to the stress and lack of oxygen.

Madolyn manages a rough landing on the strip where police and paramedics are waiting. The plane door opens, and Hasan is ejected from the aircraft, landing on the runway where he is immediately run over by a truck, ending his threat.

As medics attend to Winston, Madolyn spots another assassin entering the ambulance with him. She rushes over just in time to see the assassin trying to suffocate Winston. Madolyn shoots and kills this attacker, preventing Winston's murder. She then takes the assassin's phone and calls Coleridge, telling him that his betrayal will be exposed and that justice will be served.

In terms of character fates:

• Madolyn Harris survives, having successfully protected Winston and thwarted the attempts on his life. She emerges as a determined and resourceful marshal who refuses to be intimidated by corruption.

• Winston, the fugitive accountant, survives the ordeal and is taken into medical care, poised to testify against the Moretti crime family.

• Hasan, the hitman impersonating the pilot, dies after being ejected from the plane and run over by a truck.

• The final assassin attempting to kill Winston in the ambulance is also killed by Madolyn.

The ending emphasizes the persistence of Madolyn in the face of betrayal and danger, and the survival of Winston as a key witness to bring down the crime family. The corrupt forces are shown to be ruthless, but ultimately, justice begins to prevail through Madolyn's actions.

There is no post-credits scene in the 2025 movie Flight Risk. You can leave the theater as soon as the movie ends without missing any additional scenes or bonus content after the credits.

The pilot, named Daryl and played by Mark Wahlberg, is revealed to be a hitman hired by the mob boss Moretti to kill Winston, the fugitive and former mob accountant. His motivation is to eliminate Winston before he can testify at trial, and he exhibits a menacing, demented personality with aggressive and threatening behavior throughout the flight.

After subduing the pilot/hitman, Madolyn, the Air Marshal, has to take control of flying the small prop plane herself. She receives guidance from Hassan, a contact on the ground, to navigate and land the plane safely despite losing fuel and facing attacks from the hitman who regains consciousness during the flight.

Winston, played by Topher Grace, is a former mob accountant who has turned state's evidence against the Moretti crime family. He is nervous and smart-mouthed, often portrayed as a somewhat vulnerable but clever character who is being transported to trial under heavy guard.

During the final moments on the plane, the hitman regains consciousness and attacks again, but Madolyn shoots him and ejects him from the plane. The hitman is then run over by an ambulance waiting on the runway. Madolyn also discovers a fake paramedic trying to kill Winston and shoots him, revealing a conspiracy involving Coleridge, who is exposed as a traitor.

Hassan acts as a crucial ground contact who guides Madolyn through the difficult process of flying and landing the plane after the pilot is incapacitated. Their communication helps Madolyn manage the plane's fuel shortage and navigate the dangerous situation, ultimately contributing to the successful crash landing and survival of Winston and Madolyn.

The 2025 movie Flight Risk is not family friendly and is rated R for strong violence and language. It contains several potentially objectionable or upsetting elements for children or sensitive viewers, including:

• Strong, intense violence: knife fights, shootings, a man breaking his finger, bloody injuries, and life-threatening wounds.
• Psychological terror and suspense in a claustrophobic small plane setting with a dangerous, unpredictable antagonist.
• Very strong and crude language, including over 40 uses of the F-word and other severe profanity.
• Sexual content: repeated crude sexual references, violent sexual threats, and lewd taunts, though no explicit sex scenes or nudity.
• Threats and discussions of death: including references to people dying in accidents and violent threats of rape.
• Frightening and intense scenes: perilous airplane flight, jump scares, and tense confrontations.

There is no drug or alcohol use depicted. The film's tone is dark, suspenseful, and violent, with a strong moral theme opposing crime but delivered through mature and disturbing content.

In summary, Flight Risk is suitable only for mature audiences and is not appropriate for children or sensitive viewers due to its graphic violence, harsh language, sexual threats, and intense psychological tension.