Character Relationship Map: Synchronic

Characters

• Steve Denube (played by Anthony Mackie) — protagonist

  Steve is a New Orleans paramedic and Dennis's devoted professional partner. After being exposed to Synchronic and learning that he has aggressive cancer, he investigates the drug's time-warping effect...

• Dennis Dannelly (played by Jamie Dornan) — protagonist

  Dennis is Steve's paramedic partner and Brianna's father. When Brianna disappears, his marriage collapses and he wrongly interprets Steve's painkiller use as drug addiction, leading to a physical figh...

• Brianna Dannelly (played by Alexia Ioannides) — supporting

  Brianna is Dennis's teenage daughter, whose disappearance becomes a major motivation for Steve's dangerous experiments with Synchronic. Steve eventually finds her during the Battle of New Orleans and...

• Conquistador (played by Walker Babington) — minor
• The Looter (played by Bill Oberst Jr.) — supporting

  The Looter is a historical figure encountered during Steve's search for Brianna in the Battle of New Orleans. Mistaking Steve for a runaway slave, he threatens Steve and Brianna. Steve draws his atten...

Canonical Relationships

Family, romantic, and professional connections based on plot evidence.

• Steve Denube → Dennis Dannelly (Professional Partner) — They are established emergency medical partners whose professional bond drives the investigation.

  The plot identifies Steve and Dennis as paramedics who work together and respond to emergency calls.

• Dennis Dannelly → Brianna Dannelly (Family Father) — Dennis's paternal bond makes Brianna's disappearance the film's central personal crisis.

  The plot explicitly identifies Brianna as Dennis's teenage daughter.

Story Dynamics

Alliances, conflicts, and narrative interactions that evolve throughout the story.

• Dennis Dannelly → The Looter (Conflict Indirect Opponent) — The looter endangers Dennis's daughter and opposes the rescue effort.

  The looter threatens Brianna during the historical rescue, while Dennis is waiting for her return in the present.

• Steve Denube → Conquistador (Conflict Encountered Opponent) — The conquistador represents one of the historical dangers Steve faces.

  While experimenting with Synchronic, Steve travels into Louisiana's past and escapes an encounter with a conquistador.

• The Looter → Brianna Dannelly (Conflict Threat) — His threat places Brianna's escape in immediate danger.

  The looter threatens Steve and Brianna, forcing Steve to act as a distraction.

• The Looter → Steve Denube (Conflict Threat) — The looter becomes Steve's immediate physical antagonist.

  The looter mistakes Steve for a runaway slave and threatens him during the Battle of New Orleans.

• Steve Denube → Brianna Dannelly (Alliance Rescuer) — Steve makes Brianna's rescue his personal mission.

  Steve repeatedly uses Synchronic to search for Brianna and ultimately distracts the looter so she can use his last pill to return.

Story Analysis

A paramedic confronts mortality and distorted time while trying to bring his partner's missing daughter home.

Plot Progression

1. A Drug Beneath the City — Steve and Dennis respond to deaths associated with Synchronic. Steve's accidental exposure leads to a devastating cancer diagnosis and pushes him toward investigating the drug.
2. The Clock Inside the Drug — Steve uncovers Synchronic's time-warping effects and learns that the pineal gland controls the user's historical destination. Brianna's disappearance transforms the investigation into a rescue mission...
3. Experiments Through History — Steve repeatedly takes Synchronic and encounters dangerous periods of Louisiana's past. He gradually discovers rules governing location, time, and physical anchoring.
4. A Friendship Repaired — Steve's conflict with Dennis gives way to reconciliation when he reveals his illness and shares the time-travel evidence. Together they return to the park to search for Brianna.
5. The Last Journey — Steve finds Brianna during the Battle of New Orleans and sacrifices himself to get her home. Dennis welcomes her back while Steve's final connection with Dennis remains as a spectral farewell.