Killer Elite is a 2011 action film starring Jason Statham, Clive Owen, Robert De Niro, Yvonne Strahovski, and Dominic Purcell. The film is based on the 1991 novel The Feather Men by Sir Ranulph Fiennes, and is directed by Gary McKendry.
The plot starting in 1980, hired hitmen, Danny Bryce (Jason Statham), Hunter (Robert DeNiro), Davies (Dominic Purcell) and Meier (Aden Young) travel to Mexico, where they ambush a convoy. In the process, Danny is forced to kill a man in front of his daughter. Affected by this outcome, Danny retires and moves to Australia.
One year later, in 1981, Danny receives a package with a picture of a captive Hunter and a plane ticket. Danny travels to Oman, where he meets The Agent (Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje), who tells him that Hunter accepted a $6-million job, but failed to accomplish it and has been captured. If Danny doesn't complete Hunter's mission, Hunter will be executed.
Danny is introduced to Sheik Amr, a dying man who wants Danny to kill three former SAS agents who murdered his sons during the Dhofar Rebellion. Danny must videotape their confessions and make their deaths look like accidents, and he must do it before the Sheik dies. If he fails, his son will kill Hunter.
Danny reunites Davies and Meier, who agree to help him in exchange for spliting the money between themselves. Their first target is Steven Harris (Lachy Hulme). While Danny and Meier infiltrate Harris's house in Oman, intenting on sabotating one of the tiles of his bathroom's floor, Davies interrogates local bar patrons about former SAS members. This is reported to the Featherman, a secret society of former operatives that protect their own. One of them, Spike Logan (Clive Owen), is sent to investigate.
While Davies distracts Harris's girlfriend, Danny and Meier break into his house, force him to confess, and Meier breaks his neck using a hammer with tiles similar to those of the bathroom floor, making it seem that Harris slipped and broke his neck on the floor.
The team then travels to London, where Davies discovers that the second target's name is Steven Craig, who is going through training at a local base. Danny infiltrates a hospital to steal drugs and comes across Logan, who recognized him from the pictures taken in Oman, and deduces that he is an associate of "The Welshmen", whom he believes is the mastermind behind Harris's murder. Danny and Logan fight, with Danny gaining the upper hand and escaping. Later on, Danny and Davies impersonate civilians having car problems, allowing Danny to drug Craig's coffee. Craig dies after confessing to Danny.
The last target is Simon McCann, currently a mercenary. With the help of a new member, Jake (Michael Dorman), Danny and his team sabotage an oil tanker truck. When McCann is on his way to a fake job interview staged by Danny, Meier and Jake override the truck and cause it to crash against McCann's car, killing him. However, Logan and his men were watching over McCann, and chase after Danny, Meier, and Jake as they rush to the docks to rescue Davies. There, Meier is accidentally killed by Jake in an attempt to kill one of Logan's men.
Davies finds a number on Logan's man's body and gives it to Danny before heading back into the hotel, where he is betrayed by one of the employees, who tells Logan where he is. Logan captures Davies and is transporting him back to the Feathermen's headquarters when Davies escapes and is accidentally ran over by a truck.
Danny steals Logan's man's radio and discovers about Davies' capture and death through it. He confronts Logan and orders him not to follow him. He then returns to Oman and gives the Sheik the last tape. Hunter is released, but Danny is only to receive the money after the Sheik watches the tape. Hunter returns to his family, while Danny heads back to Australia and reunites with his girlfriend, Anne (Yvonne Strahovski). There, he is informed by the contact that there is one last man that participated of the Sheik's sons' murders and needs to be executed, and that this man is about to release a book about his experiences as a member of the SAS.
Danny tells Anne to go to France while he carries out the job, and asks Hunter to protect her. He then confronts the Sheik's son, who confirms that Harris did not participate in the murders and that Danny killed an innocent man. Meanwhile, Logan traces Danny back to the contact and confronts him, sending a team to protect the author. They are distracted by Jake, who is used as a decoy while Danny infiltrates the building and seemingly kills the author. Logan finds and chases after him, eventually capturing him. While Danny is being hauled away, Logan discovers that Danny faked the author's death.
Danny is taken to an abandoned warehouse, where is tortured by Logan. They are interrupted by the arrival of an agent from MI6, who reveals that the British government manipulated them into exposing the Feathermen's headquarters so they can be eliminated, and confirms that they allowed Danny to kill the former SAS members because of the Sheik's valuable oil contracts, which will be given to them in exchange for them looking the other way. Danny escapes and a threeway battle ensues, with Logan killing the MI6 agent and allowing Danny to escape.
Meanwhile, in France, Hunter protects Anne from the Agent and his men, shooting the agent in the leg and warning him to stay away. After this, Danny and Hunter head to Oman to give the Sheik the pictures. However, Logan arrives first and confronts the Sheikh, giving him the pictures and telling him they're fake before stabbing him to death. The Sheik's son does not care for this and gives Logan the money intented for Danny and Hunter, who spot Logan leaving and chase after him while being pursued by the Sheik's men.
After taking down the Sheik's men, Danny and Hunter confront Logan. Hunter takes some of the money for his family and gives Logan the rest, claiming that he'll need it to start a new life away from the government, who wants him dead for killing the Sheik and the MI6 agent. Logan and Danny end their feud, and Logan leaves to somewhere unknown, while Hunter returns to his family in England, and Danny meets with Anne in France to start anew.
In 1991, the author, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, publishes his book, titled "The Feathermen", detailing his life as a SAS member and his activities in Oman, which are denied by the government. The fates of Danny Bryce and his associates remain unknown.
