In this prequel to the 2006 cult hit, pyrophobic mortician Gerald Tovar, Jr. (Andrew Divoff) inherits the family mortuary and accidentally exposes hundreds of uncremated bodies to toxic medical waste. As the corpses re-animate, Gerald's inheritance-seeking younger brother, Harold (Jeffrey Combs) unexpectedly shows up and stumbles upon Gerald trying to keep the zombie outbreak under control. Sibling rivalry gives way to madness as Harold discovers Gerald's dark secret - the freshly exhumed and zombified corpse of their father.