Set in 1983 in New Mexico, the film follows Owen (Kodi Smit-McPhee), a lonely and bullied 12-year-old boy who befriends Abby (Chloë Grace Moretz), a mysterious young girl who has just moved in next door. As their friendship deepens, Owen discovers that Abby is not what she seems — she is a vampire who needs human blood to survive.

As bodies start turning up in their town, Owen is forced to confront the horrifying reality of who (or what) Abby really is, and what it means to truly love and protect someone — even if it comes at a great moral cost.