| Director | Scott Stewart |
|---|---|
| Budget | $60 million |
| Box office | $78.3 million |
A centuries-long war between humans and vampires devastated the planet's surface and led to a theocracy under "The Church". Despite vampires' vulnerability to sunlight and humans technological advancements, their strength and speed made them impossible to defeat until humanity sheltered in walled cities and trained elite warriors, the Priests, who turned the tide. After the war, most vampires were killed, while the remainder were placed in reservations. The Clergy thus abandons the surviving Priests, who struggle to integrate into city society. Outside the walled cities, some humans seek out a living, free from The Church's totalitarian control.
One particular Priest (only referred to as Priest) is approached by Hicks, the sheriff of a free town, Augustine. Hicks informed Priest that a vampire group mortally wounded Priest's brother Owen, killed his sister-in-law Shannon, and kidnapped his niece Lucy. Being in love with Lucy, Hicks asks for Priest's help in rescuing her. Priest asks the Clergy to reinstate his authority, but leader Monsignor Orelas refuses, dismissing the vampire story. Priest leaves the city and Orelas sends three Priests and a Priestess to bring him back.
Priest and Hicks arrive at Nightshade Reservation, occupied by vampires and Familiars, humans who serve them. After foiling an ambush by the residents, the pair discovers that most vampires shelter in the vampire Hive of Sola Mira, believed to be abandoned after the war. There they meet Priestess who joins them, choosing to ally with Priest rather than The Church. Priest, Priestess, and Hicks destroy a massive Hive Guardian. They discover the vampires have bred a new army and dug a tunnel towards Jericho town.
At nightfall, the other three of Orelas' Priests arrive at Jericho. An armored train arrives, unleashing a horde of vampires led by a powerful human wearing a black hat. When the Priests reject Black Hat's offer to join him, he kills them all.
The next morning, Priest, Priestess, and Hicks arrive in Jericho, finding the town empty and the three Priests crucified. Priest deduces that the vampires use the train to travel by day and attack free towns at night, and their eventual target is the walled cities. He explains to Hicks that cities are covered with clouds of smoke and ash which permanently deprive them of sunlight and make them ideal vampire hunting grounds.
Hicks gets angry with Priest's cold attitude, believing he will kill Lucy if she is infected. Priestess reveals Lucy is actually Priest's daughter. He was in a relationship with Shannon before he was taken by the Church, at which point Owen stepped in as his surrogate.
The trio catch up to the train. While Priestess rushes ahead to sabotage the railroad tracks, Priest and Hicks board the train. Battling vampires and Familiars, the two are overpowered by Black Hat just as they find Lucy. Black Hat is revealed to be Priest's former comrade, captured in the attack on Sola Mira. The vampire Queen gave him her blood, making him the first Vampire-Human hybrid who can survive the sun. As Priest fights Black Hat, Lucy discovers the truth about her parentage. On the tracks ahead of the train, Priestess battles several Familiars, but one destroys the explosives' detonator. To accomplish her mission, she mounts the explosives on her motorbike and drives it into the train engine, jumping off before the ensuing explosion. The subsequent derailment kills the vampires and Black Hat while Hicks, Priest, Priestess, and Lucy escape.
Priest returns to the city and confronts Orelas during Mass, telling him of the burnt train containing the vampires' bodies, but not the Queen's. He throws a vampire head onto the floor, shocking everyone in the room. Orelas, in denial, insists that the war is over. Outside the city Priest meets Priestess, who confirms other priests have been notified and will meet them soon.