Free Willy 2: The Adventure Home - Plot

Plot

It's been two years since Jesse saved and freed his orca friend, Willy and has since been adopted by his foster parents, Glen and Annie Greenwood. Jesse, now a hardy and responsible teenager, has an eye for girls, and he and his parents are preparing to go on a family camping trip to the Pacific Northwest. Before they leave town, however, Dwight, Jesse's former social worker, shows up to inform them that Jesse's birth mother, who abandoned him 8 years ago, was found in New York City, but has died and that she has left behind her other son, Jesse's half-brother named Elvis(Francis Capra). Elvis is sulky, overly talkative, and mischievous, and he is also prone to telling lies and easily gets on Jesse's nerves. He is invited on their trip to San Juan Island so that he and Jesse might get to know one another.

At the environmental institute there, Jesse reunites with his old Native American friend Randolph Johnson (August Schellenberg) whom Jesse met at the aquatic park when he met Willy and quickly becomes smitten with Randolph's attractive and kindly goddaughter, Nadine (Mary Kate Schellhardt), but is reluctant to romantically approach her out of concern for his friendship with Randolph. Meanwhile, resentment and disrespect from the petulant Elvis continues to be a problem for him. Mindful of both frustrations, Randolph proceeds to tell Jesse the legend of Natsilane and gives him a carved orca pendant on a necklace to remind him of the power of his special connection to Willy. Jesse cautiously begins to show his interest in Nadine, also, and as the awkward teenagers grow closer, Jesse helps Nadine befriend Willy and his orca siblings, Luna and Little Spot, in part using amateur synchronized swimming.

As they continue to enjoy their camping trip, notwithstanding more angst from Elvis regarding his unhappy childhood, an oil tanker runs aground and spills oil into the ocean, trapping the three young whales in a small cove. When word gets out that the whales are trapped and Luna is dying from the oil in her lungs, the president of the oil company (Jon Tenney) arrives and announces a great plan to move the whales into captivity where they can recover from their injuries. His real plan, however, is to sell the whales to marine mammal parks and have them perform in shows.

Jesse, Nadine and Elvis get the whales away from the cove by stealing the boat belonging to Glen and leading them out of the cove to safety, but then they are not able to save themselves when the tanker explodes and the crude oil in the water catches fire. Their boat hits a rock and starts to sink, while Glen, Annie, and Randolph set out to find them in Randolph's boat and radio for help. Nadine and Elvis are lifted into a rescue helicopter summoned by Randolph's distress signals, but Jesse slips out of the harness when reaching for the rescuer's hand and crashes into the water below. Nadine and Elvis scream for Jesse and beg the helicopter to go back down, but the thick black smoke billowing up from the flaming oil begins to choke the chopper's engine, forcing the pilot to fly the chopper away. Jesse surfaces as the chopper leaves, but is unable to stay above water. He goes back underwater and sees Willy swimming towards him. Jesse grabs onto Willy's dorsal fin and Willy brings Jesse back up to the surface. Although they are trapped in the middle of the flames, Willy dives deep and is able to swim underneath, taking Jesse with him.

Once they surface, they come upon Randolph's boat. Glen and Annie pull Jesse aboard and they thank Willy for saving his life. Willy does not want to leave, but Jesse tells him he's okay so he can go. Willy still does not budge and Jesse looks to Randolph for help who gives him a signal. Jesse understands what it means and pets Willy one last time before giving him a signal to swim away. Willy does and is later reunited with his family again. Later, the rescue workers bring Nadine and Elvis to the boat where they are happy to see Jesse alive. Jesse and Nadine happily hug and then Jesse acknowledges Elvis, who hands him a battered, folded up picture of Jesse and their mother. Jesse is stunned, and Elvis tells him that he had ripped up the picture out of anger, but then later had taped it back together for him. Elvis starts to cry as he tells Jesse that their mother always felt bad about abandoning Jesse and that she always talked about him, something Jesse never knew. He thanks Elvis for the picture and for finally allowing him to put the past behind him, and hugs Elvis. As they are hugging, Elvis tells him that their mother did love him.

When they part, Elvis asks where Willy, Little Spot, and Luna are, and Jesse tells him that they are reunited with their mother again. Elvis asks him how he knows that and Jesse grasps the orca necklace Randolph gave him and tells him that he knows. Jesse, embracing the mission of Natsilane, then starts whispering the prayer Randolph taught him two years before as the screen fades in on Willy and his family swimming and jumping in the sea.