The movie begins with Kyle, a recent Houston college graduate, preparing for a trip to the Louisiana Everglades to spread her brother’s ashes. She is accompanied by two close friends and a frenemy. They board a small charter plane to reach the remote bayou area. During the flight, tension among the group is evident, especially between Kyle and her frenemy, setting up interpersonal conflicts.

Suddenly, the plane encounters severe turbulence and mechanical failure, forcing the pilot to attempt an emergency landing in the desolate Louisiana bayou. The plane crashes into the swampy waters, breaking apart on impact. Kyle and her friends, along with a few other passengers, survive the crash but are stranded in the isolated, murky wetlands.

As the survivors gather their bearings, they realize the environment is hostile and unfamiliar. They attempt to organize themselves to find help or a way out. Kyle takes a leadership role, trying to keep the group calm and focused. They salvage what supplies they can from the wreckage, including some emergency gear and a limited amount of food and water.

While exploring the immediate area, the group notices signs of wildlife but soon discovers something far more dangerous lurking beneath the water’s surface. Aggressive alligators, mutated and unusually hostile due to a recent local drug bust that contaminated the ecosystem, begin stalking the survivors. The alligators are faster and more vicious than normal, attacking without warning.

The first attack occurs when one survivor wanders too close to the water’s edge and is dragged under by one of the meth-fueled alligators. Panic spreads through the group. Kyle insists they stick together and move cautiously, but the swamp’s terrain and the alligators’ stealth make it difficult to avoid further attacks.

The survivors attempt to use makeshift weapons and the limited supplies to defend themselves. They build a temporary shelter on a small patch of dry land, but the alligators surround them, cutting off escape routes. One by one, the group members are picked off in tense, step-by-step confrontations with the creatures. For example, during one attack, a survivor tries to fend off an alligator with a broken piece of the plane’s fuselage but is overwhelmed when multiple gators emerge from the water.

Kyle’s leadership is tested as she makes key decisions to keep the remaining survivors alive. She decides to move the group deeper into the bayou, hoping to find a ranger station or a way to signal for help. Along the way, they navigate treacherous swamp waters, avoiding quicksand and dense vegetation, while constantly watching for alligator attacks.

At one point, the group encounters a local trapper who warns them about the mutated alligators and the dangers of the bayou. He provides them with a flare gun and some advice on how to survive. This encounter gives the survivors a brief moment of hope and a plan to use the flare gun to signal rescuers.

As night falls, the survivors face a brutal alligator ambush. Kyle and her friends fight desperately, using the flare gun and improvised weapons. The sequence details each step of the fight: the alligators circle, one lunges at a survivor who narrowly escapes, Kyle fires the flare gun into the air, momentarily blinding the creatures and allowing the group to retreat.

The survivors reach an old ranger station but find it abandoned and without communication equipment. They barricade themselves inside, hoping to hold out until rescue arrives. However, the alligators breach the station’s defenses in a climactic confrontation. The fight is described in detail: the creatures smash through windows, survivors use furniture and tools to fend them off, and Kyle sacrifices herself to save the last remaining friend by distracting the alligators.

The final scene shows the last survivor escaping the bayou at dawn, exhausted and traumatized, as a rescue helicopter arrives in response to the flare gun signal. The camera lingers on the swamp waters, hinting that the mutated alligators remain a lurking threat.

The aggressive behavior of the alligators is caused by a local drug bust that leads to methamphetamine contamination, creating a new breed of meth-fueled alligators in the Louisiana bayou.

Kyle is a recent Houston college graduate who is in the bayou to spread her brother's ashes, accompanied by her two friends and a frenemy.

After escaping the plane crash, Kyle and her friends must fend off attacks from the meth-fueled alligators lurking in the bayou, using a combination of practical effects and survival tactics to try to stay alive.

The pilot and other passengers survive the crash initially but quickly become victims to the aggressive alligators, contributing to the tension and danger faced by the main group.

The setting is portrayed as the desolate Louisiana everglades, but some critics note that it does not look very authentic or bayou-like, with a washed-out, too-dark, and ultra-realistic aesthetic that affects the atmosphere.

The 2025 movie The Bayou is not family friendly and is best suited for mature audiences due to its horror and thriller content involving violent alligator attacks.

Potentially objectionable or upsetting aspects for children or sensitive viewers include:

• Graphic scenes of alligator attacks with visible violence such as biting, limb loss, and intense threats to human characters.
• Tense and frightening moments involving survival against aggressive creatures in a dark, swampy setting.
• Some disturbing imagery related to drug-related themes, as the alligators are portrayed as a dangerous, meth-influenced breed.
• The overall tone shifts from initially warm to intense horror, which may be emotionally unsettling.

There are no indications of explicit sexual content or strong language mentioned, but the violent and suspenseful nature, along with creature attacks, make it unsuitable for children or those sensitive to horror violence.