In the year 2691, students attend “Bill & Ted University” in San Dimas, California, where they study the ideologies of hometown heroes Bill S. Preston and Ted “Theodore” Logan, whose rock band, “Wyld Stallyns,” achieved fame in the 1990s. The campus atmosphere is unconventional, with one of the school’s instructors, a man named Rufus, using a time-traveling telephone booth to bring important historical figures to the classroom. One day, Rufus introduces Thomas Edison, Johann Sebastian Bach, and rock star “Sir” James Martin to the class. However, an explosion prevents the experts from lecturing to the students. When criminal mastermind Chuck De Nomolos emerges from the smoke and debris, he reveals his secret weapon: two sophisticated robots who look exactly like the Bill and Ted of 1991. De Nomolos plans to send the automatons back in time to kill their dimwitted doubles, altering the timeline so that he rules the future. As the time machine departs, Rufus attaches himself to its exterior. Meanwhile, in 1991, guitarists Bill and Ted, backed by their musician girl friends Joanna and Elizabeth, audition for the San Dimas music contest known as the “Battle of the Bands.” Ms. Wardroe, the booking agent, tells them that their musical act is terrible, but she agrees to put Wyld Stallyns on the bill. Later, at a birthday party for Ted’s girl friend, Elizabeth, Ted’s police captain father criticizes his son’s carefree lifestyle. Capt. Logan, now married to Bill’s young, attractive mother, Missy, suggests that both boys might be better off at military school. After the party, Bill and Ted propose marriage to their girl friends. As the couples kiss, lightning flashes across the sky, and the evil Bill and Ted robots land the phone booth in a convenience store parking lot. A few hours later, the doppelgangers call Bill and Ted on the phone and, using Joanna’s voice, claim that she and Elizabeth no longer want to be in the band. Bill and Ted sit in their apartment feeling rejected and watching old episodes of Star Trek, until a knock on the door alerts them to the presence of their robot doubles, who say they have come from the future to help with “the unfortunate situation.” Ted is suspicious, but evil Bill convinces them to all go for a drive together. The no-good robots take Bill and Ted to the desert and throw the unsuspecting boys over a high cliff, killing them. Their spirits awaken from the fall and meet the Grim Reaper, who intends to escort them to the afterlife. Bill and Ted ask if they could instead return to the land of the living, and Death informs them that they can challenge him to a contest: if they win, he will obey their command; if they lose, they must remain in the afterlife forever. The boys, unsure about what to do, walk fifty miles back to their apartment in San Dimas, where they discover their evil doppelgangers trying to have sex with Joanna and Elizabeth. Upset and indignant, the “dead” Bill and Ted go to the police station, where Ted’s father is holding a meeting with the other officers. Ted enters Capt. Logan’s body and tells the police force about the murderous robots. However, the policemen are skeptical, causing Ted and Bill to search for another way to alert people to the crime. Bill’s mother, Missy, happens to be holding a séance in an attempt to channel the spirits of the deceased. The boys make their presence known, but Missy, thinking they are evil spirits, recites a spell that sends them straight to hell. There, Bill and Ted capture the attention of the Devil himself, who sends them further into the underworld. The horned beast commands them to choose their eternity from a selection of unpleasant scenarios. Rather than respond to the Devil, Ted and Bill agree to face the Grim Reaper, challenging him to the board games of Battleship, Clue, and Twister. The ghoul is not skilled at the games and eventually admits defeat. Before returning to the land of the living, Bill and Ted ask to meet with someone who can help them overcome the evil robots. Death takes them to heaven, where their recitation of heavy metal song lyrics grants them a meeting with God. The deity refers Bill and Ted to a scientist named “Station,” and provides them with a map of heaven so that they can locate the genius. Meanwhile, in San Dimas, the evil Bill and Ted wreak havoc in the apartment, playing basketball with their robot heads until De Nomolos communicates from the future and tells them to stop fooling around. Back in heaven, Bill, Ted, and Death encounter two Martians who respond to the name “Station.” After a brief round of charades, they all awaken back on Earth. The group drives to a hardware store to buy supplies, and in the parking lot, the extraterrestrials shock Bill, Ted, and Death by merging and transforming into a giant creature named “Big Station.” On the way to the Battle of the Bands, the clever Martian assembles two crude robots: “good Ted” and “good Bill.” When they arrive at the auditorium, Bill and Ted take the stage and control their good doppelgangers by remote control, destroying the evil robots. The crowd cheers with approval. Just then, the time-traveling telephone booth blasts into the auditorium and De Nomolos steps out, threatening to finish the job that his robots could not. He broadcasts on worldwide television that the future will be based on his ideas, not the philosophies of moronic musicians Bill and Ted. However, Bill and Ted use their knowledge of time travel to outsmart the criminal, and De Nomolos is arrested by Capt. Logan. As the boys celebrate onstage with their girl friends, Ms. Woodroe reveals herself to be Rufus, who reminds everyone that the entire world is watching to see the outcome of the Battle of the Bands. Bill and Ted, intent on winning the contest, use the phone booth to spend sixteen months in intensive guitar training. However, in reality, mere seconds pass. They return to the stage, now married and with baby boys in tow, and introduce the band, which includes Station on bongo drums, Death on double bass, and the good robots as backup dancers. With their winning performance, Bill and Ted demonstrate that they are “most excellent” guitarists. In the years that follow, Wyld Stallyns’ music brings fame and fortune to Bill and Ted, and peace throughout the universe.