In an alternate Victorian Age world, a group of famous contemporary fantasy, science fiction, and adventure characters team up on a secret mission.
Renowned adventurer Allan Quatermain leads a team of extraordinary figures with legendary powers to battle the technological terror of a madman known as "The Fantom". This "League" comprises seafarer and inventor Captain Nemo, vampire Mina Harker, an invisible man named Rodney Skinner, American Secret Service Agent Tom Sawyer, the ageless and invincible Dorian Gray, and the dangerous split personality of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
In a parallel Victorian Britain at the dawn of the twentieth century, the megalomaniac warmonger known only as the "Fantom" threatens to unleash a bloody Armageddon of global proportions. Before this extreme and unstoppable menace, the experienced adventurer, Allan Quatermain, assembles a unique sextet of superheroes torn straight from the pages of English Literature, in high hopes of thwarting the madman's plans for world domination. Now, a blood-thirsty vampiress; a sad immortal; an elusive secret agent; an ambitious scientist; a lonely invisible man; a savage beast, and a legendary hunter are humanity's last hope. Can the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen save our world?—Nick Riganas
In this adventure, the Fantom is trying to start a World War, and be at the head of it. The Fantom has highly superior weapons to the normal weapons of that day, and he also has extreme cunning, as we see by his tricking the countries into suspecting each other for war-mongering. A supposed loyalist to her Majesty's Empire is sent to fetch Allan Quatermain in an effort to track down the group who is trying to start the war. In a private and secret meeting, Quatermain meets who he is to be teaming up with on this mission. He is accompanied by Captain Nemo, Mina Harker, Rodney Skinner, Dorian Gray, Tom Sawyer, and Dr. Henry Jekyll (also Mr. Edward Hyde). Soon into their adventure they discover that the Fantom is behind these attacks, but there is more to this war than battle and cunning.—Micah Jones <[email protected]>
It's 1899 and "The Fantom" is trying to start a World War. The job of preventing this from occurring is given to Allan Quatermain. During the briefing with "M", Quatermain discovers that he will be working alongside a host of various characters, from the Invisible Man and Captain Nemo to Dorian Gray and Dr. Henry Jekyll). Together, they are the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.—FilmFanUk
In 1899, men dressed as German soldiers attack the Bank of England and steal Leonardo Da Vinci's layouts of Venice's foundations. Shortly after, led by their leader the "Fantom", men dressed as British officers kidnap German scientists and destroy a factory, causing tension between the United Kingdom and Germany which could lead to an international war, with both attacks marked by highly advanced weaponry (for the time) such as tanks and machine guns. Sanderson Reed of the British Empire ventures to Kenya, visiting a gentlemen's club to recruit world-renowned hunter and adventurer Allan Quatermain (Sean Connery). Quatermain, retired and mourning the loss of his son after his last adventure, has no interest in serving the British Empire further. Armed men attempt to assassinate Quatermain, forcing him to agree to work with Reed.
In London, Quatermain meets "M", Reed's employer, who explains that the Fantom plans to destroy Venice to prevent a meeting between the leaders of the world, his ultimate goal being to start a world war and arms race to profit from sale of his weapons. To combat the Fantom, a team of unique individuals known as the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is being formed - consisting of Quatermain himself, Captain Nemo (Naseeruddin Shah), chemist Mina Harker (Peta Wilson), and invisible thief Rodney Skinner (Tony Curran).
M sends the group to recruit their fifth member, immortal Dorian Gray (Stuart Townsend), who remains youthful while a currently missing portrait of himself ages. Dorian once was infatuated with Mina but refuses to join the team. The Fantom and his assassins attack, but thanks to the presence of U.S. Secret Service Agent Tom Sawyer, the assassins are defeated although the Fantom escapes. Mina is revealed to be a vampire, a result of her past encounter with Count Dracula. Dorian and Sawyer join the team and set off in Captain Nemo's submarine, the Nautilus, to recruit their final member, Mr. Hyde (Jason Flymeng).
After capturing Hyde in Paris, Quatermain negotiates with him into joining the team by offering amnesty for his past crimes. Hyde agrees, transforms into his harmless self, Dr. Jekyll. On the way to Venice, it eventually becomes clear that there is a traitor on board when a camera's flash powder is found in the ship's wheelhouse and one of Dr. Jekyll's transformation formulas goes missing. Skinner is accused of being the saboteur, but he disappears.
Upon the League's arrival in Venice, bombs planted beneath the city begin to destroy buildings in a domino effect. Nemo concludes they can stop the chain reaction by destroying a building out of sequence using one of the Nautilus' missiles. Quatermain, Sawyer, Mina and Dorian take Nemo's automobile to outrun the chain reaction with Dorian and Mina leaping out to fight the Fantom's men. Quatermain spots the Fantom and confronts him, revealing him to be M. Sawyer manages to signal for the missile to be launched and what's left of Venice is saved. Dorian returns to the ship and kills Nemo's first mate Ishmael, revealing he is the traitor.
The league learns of M and Dorian's treachery, who escape in an exploration pod. A phonograph record made by M is found, M explaining his true goal was to gather physical elements of the team (Skinner's invisible skin, Jekyll's Hyde formula, Mina's vampire blood, and Nemo's technology, while he only needed Quatermain to capture Hyde) to make superhuman formulas to sell to the highest paying countries, with Dorian revealing bombs are hidden on the submarine. The bombs detonate, damaging the sub, but Hyde drains the flooding water from the Nautilus' engine rooms. Skinner, who stowed away on Dorian's pod, messages the group to follow his lead.
The Nautilus travels up the Amur River to northern Mongolia where the league reunites with Skinner. Skinner reveals M runs a factory where weapons armed versions of the Nautilus are being constructed along with M's other weapons. The kidnapped scientists are forced to make "invisible spies, an army of Hydes, vampire based assassins." In order that they do so, M has held the scientists' families as hostages. The league break into the factory and split up.
Nemo and Hyde free the scientists and their families. Skinner sets bombs to destroy the factory. Quatermain and Sawyer go after M, who is revealed to be Professor James Moriarty. Mina confronts Dorian and kills him by exposing his portrait to him. Nemo and Hyde manage to free the scientists and their families but are confronted by Dante and a few of Moriarty's troops, Nemo and Hyde are able to dispatch the soldiers, but Dante gets a hold of a large flask of Hyde formula, he drinks the whole thing, transforming him into an over-muscled, rage-filled abomination that gives Hyde and Nemo trouble in beating him in a direct fight. Quatermain fights Moriarty who points out Sawyer has been taken captive by Sanderson Reed, who has been turned invisible. Quatermain shoots Reed but is then stabbed by Moriarty who escapes out of a window with the collection of formulas. Sawyer manages to use Quatermain's teachings to shoot Moriarty dead from afar, the formulas sinking into the icy waters below. Quatermain dies from his injuries, telling Sawyer that the new century is now his just as the old one was Quatermain's.
Quatermain is buried in Kenya beside his son, but the other league members recall his story of how a witch doctor, whose village he had once saved, blessed him, saying as long as he was in Africa, Africa would never allow him to die. After Sawyer, Mina, Nemo, Skinner and Dr. Jekyll depart, the witch doctor appears and performs a ritual. A bolt of lightning strikes Quatermain's grave, leaving the result ambiguous.
