_O Homem do Ano_ starts with a fantasy-come-true: Máiquel (Murilo Benício) shoots local hoodlum Suel (Wagner Moura) in the back, killing him, but rather than get into trouble, Máiquel is hailed a hero by his neighbours. He goes on to become a minor celebrity as people leave gifts for him for his "heroic deed", not the least of which is a piglet that he names Bill. Máiquel gains a girlfriend in Cledir (Cláudia Abreu) and an admirer/patron in Dr. Carvalho (Jorge Dória), a dentist. The hero's life becomes more complicated when Suel's very young girlfriend Érica (Natália Lage) insists that Máiquel...