The story centers on the Royal Navy's perilous voyage into unchartered territory as the crew attempts to discover the Northwest Passage. Faced with treacherous conditions, limited resources, dwindling hope and fear of the unknown, the crew is pushed to the brink of extinction. Frozen, isolated and stuck at the end of the earth, The Terror highlights all that can go wrong when a group of men, desperate to survive, struggle not only with the elements, but with each other.

An accident at sea cripples a Royal Navy expedition, forcing its captains to make a dire choice.

After a long winter trapped in the ice, scouting parties are sent out in search of open water. One of the teams makes a frightening discovery.

With something stalking the ships, the expedition's commanders debate their dwindling options.

A series of cunning attacks on the ships proves to the men they are not battling an ordinary bear.

A strange illness begins to show itself while another more familiar one jeopardizes the expedition's most valuable resource - its captain's judgment.

With the end of their provisions in sight, officers contemplate a tough, risky strategy while struggling to raise the men's worsening spirits.

As the men make new attempts to find rescue, a series of shocking events underscores how vulnerable and exposed their situation has become.

Deaths under mysterious circumstances create paranoia among the men, and some of the crew may be considering mutiny.

Hope comes in strange forms, and the question of what the men are willing to do to survive begins to be settled in both noble and horrifying ways.

The expedition's epic journey reaches its climax as men find themselves in a final confrontation with the Inuit mythology they've trespassed into.