After dealing with unwanted aliens for almost 30 years following first contact, South Africa, tired of the ongoing tension between humans and the disparagingly referred to "prawns," hands the problem over to a military-industrial conglomerate, MNU. An honest but awkward bureaucrat named Wikus is sent to District 9 to deliver eviction notices to the ghetto dwellers, accompanied by the aggressive mercenary Venter, who would prefer to kill them all. While interacting with an alien named Johnson, Wikus accidentally spills a fluid that's been distilled for escape purposes on himself and starts to morph into a prawn. Executives at MNU see this as an opportunity to gain total power as the aliens' advanced weapons can now be used by humans. To prevent being used for exploitation, Wikus, now a crossbreed, goes on the run, but must also confront Nigerian gangster Obesandjo who wants to eat Wikus's alien arm for greater power.