🎬 The Curse of Anubis
1. Title : The Curse of Anubis
2. One-Line Story (Logline)
A young archaeologist unearths a hidden temple of Anubis in the desert, but unleashes the dead who demand justice for forgotten crimes — and now he must face his own sins before the entire city is consumed by darkness.
3. Storyline / Synopsis
Arjun Mehra, a brilliant yet reckless young archaeologist, leads a desert excavation in Egypt. While searching for treasures to prove himself, he stumbles upon a hidden temple dedicated to Anubis, the God of Death and Justice.
Inside, he unknowingly breaks a sacred seal, awakening ancient spirits who rise from the sands. These spirits aren’t just mindless dead — they demand justice for wrongs committed, both ancient and personal.
As chaos spreads, Arjun realizes the curse is tied to his own past: his greed caused the death of a fellow archaeologist years ago. Now, with the city falling into supernatural darkness, he must confess, face trial before Anubis, and choose between his life or redemption.
The story blends mythology, mystery, and psychological horror, ending with a moral: no sin remains buried forever.
4. Casting Suggestions
· Arjun Mehra (Lead Archaeologist) – Vicky Kaushal / Rajkummar Rao
· Professor Roy (Mentor, later betrays) – Naseeruddin Shah / Pankaj Kapur
· Naina (Local Historian, love interest) – Mrunal Thakur / Sobhita Dhulipala
· Omar (Egyptian Guide, comic relief, later victim) – Ali Fazal
· High Priest of Anubis (spirit) – Manoj Bajpayee (powerful, intense presence)
· Voice of Anubis – Deep, baritone (Irrfan Khan-type voice, could be dubbed by a strong voice actor).
5. Act-Wise Breakdown
Act 1 – The Awakening (30 min)
· Introduce Arjun & excavation team in Egypt.
· Arjun’s ambition and arrogance shown.
· Discovery of temple entrance buried under desert.
· Local villagers warn about “the guardian”.
· First sign of curse: sandstorm + strange hieroglyph glowing.
· Arjun ignores warnings, breaks sacred seal → curse begins.
Act 2 – The Curse Unleashed (60 min)
· Spirits of the dead rise, haunting the camp and nearby city.
· Archaeological artifacts turn into weapons.
· Arjun & Naina study inscriptions → reveal curse linked to truth and justice.
· Professor Roy secretly wants to exploit the temple for power.
· Midpoint twist: Arjun’s past crime revealed — during a dig in India, his negligence caused his colleague’s death, which he covered up.
· The curse grows stronger → city suffers (water turns to blood, dead roam streets, eclipse).
· Omar dies, showing the stakes are real.
· Arjun realizes only acceptance of guilt + trial before Anubis can end this.
Act 3 – The Judgment (30 min)
· Temple transforms into Hall of Judgment.
· Arjun stands trial before Anubis, with spirits as jury.
· Professor Roy tries to steal the “Scales of Justice” → punished by eternal sand burial.
· Arjun confesses his crime, begs forgiveness.
· Climax: he offers his life to balance the scales.
· Anubis accepts his truth, curse breaks, spirits vanish.
· Ending bittersweet: city saved, Arjun redeemed but disappears into the sands.
· Final scene: Naina finds Arjun’s journal → “No sin stays buried. Truth is the only light.”
The Curse of Anubis – Act 1 (Sample Screenplay)
EXT. DESERT – DAY
A convoy of jeeps crawl across the blazing dunes. The wind howls. Heat ripples distort the horizon.
ARJUN (V.O.)
History isn’t written in books… it sleeps under the sand.
And I’ll be the one to wake it.
EXT. EXCAVATION SITE – DAY
Workers set up tents and dig pits. Arjun (30s, sharp, restless ambition in his eyes) steps down from a jeep. Professor ROY, older and calm, greets him. NAINA, a historian, unrolls maps. OMAR, the Egyptian guide, unloads crates.
PROF. ROY
Arjun, this desert has swallowed men braver than you. Don’t underestimate it.
ARJUN
(smiles arrogantly)
Professor, deserts don’t scare me. Failure does.
NAINA
(pointing at the map)
The inscriptions suggest… a burial temple. But it’s marked with warnings.
ARJUN
Warnings are for men with no vision.
(to workers)
Keep digging. We’re close.
INT. EXCAVATION TENT – NIGHT
Lamp light flickers. Scrolls and maps spread out on a table. Naina reads aloud hieroglyphs while Arjun sips coffee, impatient.
NAINA
Every legend speaks of a guardian. “The Jackal will rise when disturbed.”
ARJUN
(laughs)
Folklore. Superstition. We’re scientists, Naina. Truth is under stone, not in
ghost stories.
PROF. ROY
Sometimes myths protect truths greater than facts.
ARJUN
Or they hide treasures waiting to be found.
EXT. DESERT VILLAGE – DAY
Old villagers watch the excavation lights in the distance. One ELDER grabs Omar’s arm.
ELDER (in Arabic, subtitled)
Tell them… stop digging. The guardian of the dead never forgives.
OMAR
(translates nervously)
They say… we are disturbing the god of death.
ARJUN
(shrugs)
Then death will have to wait. We dig tomorrow.
EXT. DIG SITE – AFTERNOON
Workers uncover strange stone blocks with hieroglyphs. Naina kneels, tracing the carvings with her fingers.
NAINA
(reading)
“Here rests the Scales of Anubis. Only the pure may pass.”
ARJUN
(grinning)
Looks like history has left me a gift.
👉 This is how the screenplay with dialogues
will look.
The Curse of Anubis – Act 2
EXT. TEMPLE ENTRANCE – NIGHT
The stone door groans open. Cold wind sweeps across the desert. Torches flicker out. Silence… then whispers in an ancient tongue.
OMAR
(frightened)
Ya Allah… something is awake.
NAINA
(horrified, reading symbols)
It says—“The scales demand truth… or the city falls.”
ARJUN
(gritting teeth)
Enough riddles. Keep moving.
INT. TEMPLE HALL – NIGHT
Ancient statues line the corridor. Suddenly, sand pours out of their eyes. One statue cracks open—inside, a mummified figure stirs to life.
OMAR
(screams)
They’re moving!
The undead lunge at workers. Picks, chisels, even relics turn into weapons in their hands.
ARJUN
(shouting)
Back! Everyone back!
EXT. EXCAVATION CAMP – NIGHT
Chaos. Spirits rise from the sand, half-buried corpses claw out. Workers flee into desert darkness. Fires ignite. The curse spreads.
NAINA
Arjun! This isn’t random. They’re seeking justice.
ARJUN
Justice for what?!
NAINA
For sins… yours, mine, everyone’s.
INT. RESEARCH TENT – LATER THAT NIGHT
Arjun and Naina frantically study the inscriptions under lamplight. Professor Roy watches silently, greed in his eyes.
NAINA
(reading slowly)
“The guilty must stand before Anubis. Lies weigh heavier than gold. Only truth
frees the living.”
ARJUN
(angrily)
So what? I confess sins and everything disappears?
PROF. ROY
(cutting in)
Or… we control it. Imagine—power over life and death. The world would kneel.
NAINA
(disgusted)
This isn’t power, Professor. It’s a trial.
EXT. CITY OUTSKIRTS – DAY
The curse spreads into town. Water in wells turns crimson. Dead soldiers walk the streets, terrifying civilians. An unnatural eclipse darkens the sky.
INT. TEMPLE INNER CHAMBER – NIGHT (MIDPOINT TWIST)
Arjun stares at wall carvings. His face pales. A name is inscribed—the name of his old colleague from India.
NAINA
What is it?
ARJUN
(voice trembling)
It’s… him. Raghav.
NAINA
(confused)
The man who—?
ARJUN
(interrupting)
He died in a cave-in. Because of me. I ignored the warning. I sealed the truth.
The walls rumble. Spirits screech louder, feeding on his guilt.
EXT. CAMP – DAWN
The team runs as a sandstorm of screaming souls tears through the site. Omar stumbles, dragged by skeletal hands.
OMAR
(crying out)
Arjun! Help me!
Arjun reaches, but Omar is pulled under the sand, vanishing. Silence. Only his scarf remains fluttering.
NAINA
(tears in her eyes)
He’s gone… Arjun, this won’t stop until you face it.
ARJUN
(whispers, broken)
Then Anubis wants me.
Camera pushes in on his face, torn between fear and resolve.
👉 End of Act 2: Arjun realizes the curse is personal. His buried guilt is the key, and the only way out is to face judgment before Anubis.
The Curse of Anubis – Act 3
INT. TEMPLE – NIGHT
The walls quake. Torches ignite on their own. The temple stretches unnaturally, transforming into a vast HALL OF JUDGMENT. Statues of jackal-headed gods loom, and countless SPIRITS sit silently like a jury.
NAINA
(whispers)
The Hall of Judgment… it’s real.
ARJUN
(terrified, whispering back)
Then this is where it ends.
A towering SHADOW steps forward — ANUBIS, half-human, half-jackal, eyes burning gold. His voice is deep, echoing across eternity.
ANUBIS
(slow, thunderous)
Arjun Mehra… you have disturbed the scales. Stand trial.
TRIAL BEGINS
Arjun stands trembling in the center. Spirits murmur, pointing. Professor Roy steps forward, clutching a glowing artifact (the Scales of Justice).
PROF. ROY
(to Anubis)
Why waste time on judgment? With these scales, I can command your army! The
world will know my name!
He lifts the scales. Suddenly, the ground splits. Sand swirls into a vortex, dragging him screaming into an eternal pit.
PROF. ROY
(screaming)
No! Nooo—!
He vanishes beneath the sand. Silence falls.
ANUBIS
(growling)
Greed has no place before justice.
ARJUN’S CONFESSION
Arjun drops to his knees, tears streaming.
ARJUN
(voice breaking)
I confess… I confess my sin. Years ago, in India… I ignored warnings. My
colleague Raghav—he begged me to stop the dig. I wanted fame. The tunnel
collapsed. He died because of me. And I lied. I buried the truth with him.
The SPIRITS wail, some angry, some sorrowful. The scales begin to tilt heavily.
ANUBIS
(booming)
Truth weighs more than gold… and lies weigh heavier still.
NAINA
(pleading)
Please, he admits his guilt! Show mercy!
CLIMAX – SACRIFICE
Arjun stands, trembling but resolute.
ARJUN
If a life must balance the scales… let it be mine. Take me, but free the city.
He steps onto the scales himself. The balance steadies. A beam of golden light bursts from the ceiling. Spirits dissolve peacefully into sand, whispering as they vanish.
ANUBIS
(softly, almost human)
Your truth redeems you. Your sacrifice ends the curse.
Anubis fades into shadow. The Hall crumbles, returning to stone ruins. Arjun’s body glows faintly… then scatters into the desert winds.
EXT. DESERT – DAWN
The storm is gone. The city is safe. Naina walks alone across the sands. She clutches Arjun’s old journal, half-buried near the ruins.
She opens it. The last line, written in Arjun’s handwriting:
ARJUN (V.O.)
“No sin stays buried. Truth is the only light.”
Naina closes the journal, tears in her eyes. She looks at the rising sun. Fade to black.
🎬 THE END
This completes your full 3-Act screenplay outline with dialogues (around 2.5 hours worth when fully expanded).
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