Man-Thing is a 2005 monster film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Brett Leonard, it stars Matthew Le Nevez, Rachael Taylor, and Jack Thompson, with Conan Stevens portraying the title character. The film is influenced by Man-Thing comics written by Steve Gerber and follows a Louisiana sheriff (Le Nevez) as he investigates a series of deaths in a swamp, leading to him encountering the eponymous creature.

Plot

At Dark Waters, a Native American sacred land containing an enigmatic swamp spirit, a teenager is murdered by a plant-like monster. The following day, young replacement sheriff Kyle Williams reaches Bywater and meets with deputy sheriff Fraser, who tells him the previous sheriff is among 47 missing persons since oil tycoon Fred Schist bought the ancient tribal lands from shaman and Seminole chieftain Ted Sallis, the first to disappear. Schist claimed that Sallis had sold the lands legally and then escaped with the money. Schist then asked the sheriff for help: local protesters opposed his perfectly legal activities, and mestizo scoundrel Rene Laroque was sabotaging his facilities. Williams investigates this while trying to find an explanation for the missing people, some of which were found brutally murdered with plants growing from inside their bodies. Photographer Mike Ploog and shaman Pete Horn tell Williams local legends about the guardian spirit, suggesting that it could be real.