Holt, a former circus star, finds his life turned upside-down when he returns from the War. Circus owner Max Medici enlists him to care for a newborn elephant whose oversized ears make him a laughing stock in an already struggling circus. But when Holt's children, Milly and Joe, discover that Dumbo can fly, persuasive entrepreneur V. A. Vandemere and aerial artist Colette Marchant swoop in to make the peculiar pachyderm a star.