Jack Gable (John Candy), a soap opera writer with little in the way of a love life -- and even less job security -- takes a knock on the head one day and wakes up in the very television show he has been writing. He discovers that through his typewriter he can control events in his new reality. At first, Jack believes this will help him impress Laura (Emma Samms), the actress who plays the program's star, but soon he realizes that no matter how much power he has, he can't control everything.