In the fourth millennium BC in ancient Egypt, slave raiders seize villagers to toil as servants for Pharaoh Sefirama in preparation for his burial. As they cluster around Sefirama’s sarcophagus, a deadly poison gas seeps through the chamber and the tomb’s entrance is sealed, cutting off any chance of escape.
Centuries later, three men—Rick, Tariq, and Karib—stumble upon the tomb’s sealed entrance. The tomb’s high priestess, now an elderly woman, warns that the burial site is cursed, but Rick, George Peck in spirit, shrugs off the omen with a casual pistol shot into the air and orders Tariq and Karib to guard the tomb for the night before he heads off in his Jeep.
That night, three grave robbers arrive and are greeted by the priestess, who urges them to seal the tomb to keep the curse at bay. They venture inside, but the lingering gases revive the tomb’s deadly grip; one robber dies, while the other two manage to escape.
Meanwhile, American models travel to Egypt for a fashion shoot. Among them, model Lisa, Brenda Siemer Scheider, finds trouble on the way to the tomb when one tire punctures. She halts with the director Gary, John Salvo, near a dune, where Lisa stumbles and discovers the severed head of one of the robbers, a grim omen that travels with the group back to their location.
Rick and his crew return to the tomb and begin exploring its burial chamber. Rick attempts to carve a passage, but Tariq and Karib deter him, then detonate the entrance with dynamite, forcing open Sefirama’s sarcophagus in hopes of uncovering even richer treasure.
Dawn breaks and the models set up shots near the tomb. Karib fires at them, mistaking the group for intruders, but Rick and Tariq intervene. The models proceed into the tomb despite their objections. A misstep with hot lights somehow revives Sefirama himself. Rick yanks a power cable away from one of the spotlights, halting the reanimation long enough for Jenn[y] (Jenny) to be dispatched to fetch a battery. A bowl containing one of Sefirama’s organs spills, infecting Jenny’s hand and triggering the undead effectively as Sefirama’s followers begin to rise.
Tariq decides to return home, while Jenny’s infection scorches her body from within. Karib ventures into the tomb alone, cuts open Sefirama’s mummy, and steals the crook and flail of the ancient king. A doorway to another chamber opens; Karib crosses the threshold but is seized by the doorway’s trap and dragged away. The next day, Rick and Tariq re-enter the tomb in search of Karib, and they recover Sefirama’s crook, flail, and other treasures.
Around a campfire that night, the models discover the two robbers’ corpses with crushed heads. The priestess re-enters the tomb, and the mummy rises to kill her as part of the curse she warned about.
The following day, a model becomes separated in the labyrinth. Gary and Ahmed head to town to rest, where Omar greets them at a wedding celebration. Jenny and Gary take a break and encounter a “smoke” given by Omar. Jenny glimpses the mummy, but the creature vanishes when Gary looks again.
Back at the tomb, the mummy decapitates another tomb raider. Models Lisa and Melinda retreat to a nearby oasis for a swim, while Melinda, stepping away, encounters the mummy and its soldiers. She is killed in a brutal attack as the tempo of danger quickens.
The next day, Rick discovers Tariq is dead. He calls out to the God of the Sun as a wall slides back, revealing a hidden treasure chamber. The mummy returns and kills Rick in the blaze of the chamber’s golden glow. Bill and Gary head to town to check in with Omar, who is celebrating his wedding.
Lisa, meanwhile, continues to scout the tomb while Bill locates the gold and yells out in triumph. Rick’s severed head drops from the ceiling into Bill’s arms, a macabre omen of the mummy’s reach. Bill retreats to the camp, fleeing the mummy’s advancing soldiers. The mummy decapitates Bill, and Jenny is hunted and eaten alive by the advancing undead.
At Omar’s wedding, chaos erupts as the “soldiers” feast on the wedding party. The models scramble for safety as the mummy and its minions stampede through the streets. Lisa and June arrive and, with Omar’s help, spread gasoline and light a fuse in a box of dynamite to blow up a shed where the mummy is trapped. Gary arrives and walks away with Lisa, June, and Omar, but the mummy’s hand later rises from the rubble, a chilling reminder that the curse might not be laid to rest.
