In a society where the haves are separated from the have-nots by the confines of a privileged world supported from beneath by an unseen class of workers, idealistic young Freder (Gustav Frohlich), the son of city Master John Frederson (Alfred Abel), stumbles one day into the previously unknown realm of the workers and learns first-hand of the forced torment and hopelessness of their lives. There, in their harsh, underground world, they labor, day and night, manning the machines which keep his beautiful world above functioning. Distressed by what he sees, Freder returns to the surface and asks his father for fairer treatment and an equal share in their city above for the workers who’ve built it. His father rebuffs him, however, and instead puts into action a plan to undermine the workers and maintain the status quo. But his nefarious deeds may only serve to destroy Metropolis for everyone and his own son along with it.