Michael Dorsey (Dustin Hoffman) is an unemployed actor with a reputation for being 'difficult'. Desperate for work, Michael dresses up in drag in an attempt to land a part in a daytime soap as a mature woman. He succeeds, and achieves instant fame as Dorothea Michaels. However, complications develop when he falls in love with Julie, a female cast member (Jessica Lange), while simultaneously having to fend off the amorous advances of both Julie's father (Charles Durning) and male actors on the set.