In 1927, George Valentin is a silent movie superstar. However, the advent of the talkies will kill his career and he will sink into oblivion. For young extra Peppy Miller, it seems the sky's the limit as major movie stardom awaits. Though their careers are taking different paths their destinies will become entwined.

For an awkward, self-conscious girl like Kiki (Julia Roberts), being the personal assistant to a beautiful megastar like Gwen (Catherine Zeta-Jones) is no bowl of cherries. But when she dutifully accepts the task of helping Gwen and her estranged megastar husband Eddie (John Cusack) make it through one last public appearance masterminded by legendary but neurotic press agent Lee Phillips (Billy Crystal), forever devoted Kiki finds that her job satisfaction...