Walter (Jim Carrey Jim Carrey) used to lead a happy rural life, until one day he got involved with the number "23" and his life changed completely. His wife Agatha gave Walter a novel called "number 23" as a birthday present. The book looks mundane and describes a detective who encounters 23 nightmares. The number "23" is like a yoke to control his life. In the end, he killed his wife himself. Walter was surprised to find that many of the scenes and details of life described in the book were the same as his own, both past and imminent. The plot of the novel seems to push his life to the final abyss-he killed his wife with his own hands. In order to avoid this outcome, Walter had to find out the truth behind these events and "23"!