Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure - Plot

Plot

In 2688, humanity exists as a utopian society due to the inspiration of the music and wisdom of the Two Great Ones: Bill S. Preston, Esq. (Alex Winter) and "Ted" Theodore Logan (Keanu Reeves). Rufus (George Carlin) is tasked by the leaders to travel back to San Dimas, California of 1988 using a time machine shaped like a phone booth to ensure that the Bill and Ted, then dim-witted high school students, successfully pass a history class. Should they fail, Ted's father, police captain Logan (Hal Langdon), plans to ship Ted to a military academy in Alaska, ending Bill & Ted's fledgling band, the "Wyld Stallyns", and altering the future.

Rufus finds the two teenagers struggling to finish their history paper, which tasks them to describe how three historical figures would view San Dimas of the present, trying to obtain help from customers at a local Circle K convenience store. Rufus initially has difficulty convincing the two of his help when a copy of the phone booth time machine arrives, and versions of Bill and Ted from some hours in the future step out. They are able to convince their earlier selves that Rufus can be trusted by correctly guessing the number the two were thinking of, sixty-nine. The future Bill and Ted briefly discuss their situation with Rufus before disappearing.

Rufus offers the pair a demonstration of the time machine, taking them back to 1805 where they find Napoleon Bonaparte (Terry Camilleri) leading his forces against Austria. As Rufus, Bill and Ted depart back to the present, Napoleon is thrown by a cannonball explosion into their wake, and is dragged through the time circuits to the present. Rufus takes a moment to explain that time will continue to progress normally for Bill and Ted and they cannot miss their class presentation the next day, and then departs, leaving the empty time machine for the two. As Bill and Ted discuss where to go next, they discover Napoleon stuck in a nearby tree. This gives them the idea of kidnapping historical figures as to bring them to the present to complete their report. They leave Napoleon with Ted's younger brother Deacon (Frazier Bain) before travelling.

The two are able to successfully befriend Billy the Kid (Dan Shor) from 1879 and Socrates (Tony Steedman) from 410 B.C. (whom they refer to as "So-crates" ( /ˈsoʊkreɪts/)), before stopping in 15th century England, where they become infatuated with Princesses Elizabeth (Kimberley Kates) and Joanna (Diane Franklin). This leads to them getting in trouble with their father the King, but Billy and Socrates rescue the pair, and they escape, though the booth is partially damaged on their departure. They end up in the far future, discovering the society based on their influence, and are inspired to complete their report with "extra credit" by kidnapping additional historical figures: Sigmund Freud (Rod Loomis) from 1901, Ludwig van Beethoven (Clifford David) 1809, Genghis Khan (Al Leong) from 1209, Joan of Arc (Jane Wiedlin) from 1429, and Abraham Lincoln (Robert V. Barron) from 1863. After a brief stop in prehistoric times to repair the booth, Bill and Ted program the machine to return to the present, but end up outside the Circle K on the night before, where Rufus was introducing himself to them. Bill and Ted convince their earlier selves of Rufus' trustworthiness, and then are reminded by Rufus of how to get to the next day.

When they arrive, Ted learns that Deacon had ditched Napoleon. They leave the other historical figures at the local mall to learn about San Dimas while they seek out Napoleon at a local water park, "Waterloo." While gone, the historical figures get into trouble and are arrested by Captain Logan. Bill and Ted execute an escape plan based on using the time machine in the future to set up what they need now. With all their historical figures recollected, the two give their presentation to the school, which is a rousing success, allowing them to pass the course and the two sends the historical figures back to their own time periods.

Some time later, Rufus returns to Bill and Ted, presenting them with the two princesses before they were committed to a pre-arranged marriage, noting that the two women will also be part of Wyld Stallyns. Rufus asks to join the group as they play, but upon hearing their cacophony of music, admits to the audience that "they do get better".