Six years after the violent death of her husband, Amelia is at a loss. She struggles to discipline her out of control 6-year-old, Samuel, a son she finds impossible to love. Samuels dreams are plagued by a sinister monster he believes is coming to kill them both. When a disturbing storybook called The Babadook turns up at their house, Samuel is convinced that the Babadook is the creature hes been dreaming about. His hallucinations spiral out of control and as he becomes more unpredictable and violent, Amelia is genuinely frightened by her sons behaviour. But when Amelia begins to see glimpses of a sinister presence all around her, it slowly dawns on her that the thing Samuel has been warning her about may be real.