During his afternoon history class, unpopular high school student Barry Gabrewski has a vivid, recurring daydream in which he is the sidekick to his favorite martial arts film star, Chuck Norris. He stirs from his reverie to the teasing of his classmates—all except a pretty cheerleader named Lauren, who comes to his defense. After school, Barry’s teacher, Noreen Chan, discusses the problem with his widowed father, Jerry. Hoping to ground his son’s fantasies in something real, Jerry takes Barry to sign up for karate class with “dojo master” Kelly Stone, but they are quickly turned off by the instructor’s egotistical attitude and derogatory remarks about his former competitor, Chuck Norris. Instead, Noreen Chan invites Barry to meet her elderly uncle, Lee Chan, who has recently arrived from China to run her father’s restaurant. Taking a liking to the boy, Mr. Lee offers to teach Barry martial arts and impresses the Gabrewskis when he singlehandedly defends himself against a gang of drunken bikers. The next day, Barry decides to walk to school to build up his physical endurance so he can overcome his crippling asthma. In the locker room, a bully named Randy Cellini tears up Barry’s favorite martial arts magazine featuring a cover story about Chuck Norris. His gym teacher ridicules Barry for falling asleep on the bleachers, and forces him to climb a vertical rope while the other students jeer. Struggling to reach the top, he imagines Chuck Norris giving him words of encouragement. Afterward, Lauren offers her sympathy for the other students’ behavior. Barry asks her out on a date, but instantly realizes he has mistaken her pity for romantic interest. Embarrassed, he runs home and suffers an anxiety attack that sends him to the hospital. Mr. Lee recognizes the boy’s ambition and helps him develop a sensible training regimen. Over time, Barry becomes stronger, improves his reflexes, and learns to use nunchaku. As the two families spend more time together, Barry’s teacher and father develop a romantic relationship. One day, Barry stands up to Randy Cellini and holds his own in a fight, which prompts Lauren to reconsider her feelings and ask him on a date. Insulted and jealous, Randy Cellini challenges Barry to the Texas Open Karate Championships, where he will be competing with his instructor, Kelly Stone. Mr. Lee encourages Barry to fight on a team with him and Noreen. On the day of the competition, however, the registrar turns them away because each team is required to have four members. When Chuck Norris arrives as a guest of the event, Mr. Lee decides to ask the superstar to stand in as their fourth teammate, in hope of making Barry’s dreams a reality. Norris agrees, relishing the opportunity to defeat his archrival, Kelly Stone, and Barry is stunned to meet his hero. After Mr. Lee and Noreen compete in their respective events, Barry receives a high score for his nunchaku routine, elevating their team to second place. For the final round of freestyle fighting, Kelly Stone tries too hard to show off in front of Chuck Norris, who swiftly knocks his opponent to the ground by kicking him in the face. With the two teams now tied for overall points, Barry volunteers for the tie-breaker round against Randy Cellini, which requires him to smash his arm through a stack of flaming bricks. He succeeds, and the crowd erupts in wild applause. Afterward, Barry thanks Chuck Norris for making his dreams come true before rushing off to rejoin his father and Noreen. He accidentally leaves behind his prized martial arts magazine, but when he turns back to look for it, Norris has disappeared. Barry walks away, and a young boy in a wheelchair finds the magazine and flips through the pages in awe.