Former Army Ranger Mike Banning (Gerard Butler) leads the U.S. Presidential Secret Service detail, maintaining a personal, friendly relationship with President Benjamin Asher (Aaron Eckhart), First Lady Margaret (Ashley Judd), and their son Connor (Finley Jacobsen). On a snowy Christmas drive from Camp David, the car transporting the First Family spins out of control on an icy bridge; Banning pulls Asher from the vehicle, but fails to save Margaret as she falls to her death.