Rise of the Dead Saga

The Rise of the Dead Saga is a series of zombie films created by Jack Hillebrecht and Ryan Woods consisting of Rise of the Dead in 2013, Rise of the Dead 2: Apocalypse in 2013, The Rise of the Dead in 2019, and Rise of the Dead: The Undead Heart.

Premise
The films follow the adventures of several adolescents as they survive the Zombie Apocalypse and uncover the antidote to the zombie plague. As the series progresses, there is a "torch-passing" of the role of protagonist.

Major Characters

 * Jack one of the two protagonists of Rise of the Dead and Rise of the Dead 2: Apocalypse. He makes a brief silent cameo appearance in Rise of the Dead: The Undead Heart
 * Ryan one of the two protagonists of Rise of the Dead and Rise of the Dead 2: Apocalypse. He also makes silent cameo appearances in The Rise of the Dead and Rise of the Dead. He is currently confirmed to be a Half-zombie.
 * John the tertiary protagonist of Rise of the Dead, Rise of the Dead 2: Apocalypse, and The Rise of the Dead. He is deceased as of the third film.
 * The Guy With The Car is the main antagonist of Rise of the Dead and Rise of the Dead 2: Apocalypse, where he dies.
 * Annika is the main protagonist of The Rise of the Dead who inhabited the Safe house after it was abandoned in Rise of the Dead 2: Apocalypse. She likely currently a half-zombie, but her exact fate is ambiguous.
 * Alyssa Dawn is the main antagonist and secondary protagonist of The Rise of the Dead, as well as the main protagonist of Rise of the Dead: The Undead Heart She is currently alive and lives in the Safe house.
 * Molly is the secondary protagonist of Rise of the Dead: The Undead Heart. She likely currently a half-zombie, but her exact fate is ambiguous.

Films

 * Rise of the Dead (July 7, 2013)
 * Rise of the Dead 2: Apocalypse (October 17, 2013)
 * The Rise of the Dead (May 23, 2019)
 * Rise of the Dead: The Undead Heart (World Premiere at "Something Wicked Film Festival" August 14, 2021)

Rise of the Dead
A boy named Ryan informs his friend Jack of a zombie invasion, and the two decide to set out to find a safer shelter. After several encounters with zombies, they find John and they continue their quest. They are soon captured by the mysterious Arthur Beansman Community. It is there Jack remembers a Safe house house with a nearly impenetrable security system owned by "Old Man Paranoid." After escaping, they decide to go find the house. On their travels, they are confronted by The Guy With The Car, but John throws a rock at him, sending him into a coma. The kids steal his car, and drive it to the house, only to find it surrounded by the zombies. After fighting them off, John tells Jack and Ryan to go inside the house, and that he will buy them time. Jack wakes up in the house, and Ryan tells him that they made it to the house and that John is missing. However, Ryan forgot to turn on the security system, and the house is soon attacked by zombies. Jack and Ryan fight them off, make it to the control panel, and activate the system. A bomb is triggered, but Jack and Ryan escape the blast radius. Once they are safe, the two vow to remember John and that they will continue the fight against the zombies. However, a zombie survived the blast, and continues to lurk about the house.

Rise of the Dead 2: Apocalypse
Jack throws a surprise party for Ryan, and while the two celebrate they realize that they can't hide forever, and that they it is their responsibility as survivors to try and help people. Jack later discovers a video that was streamed by Dr. George Gutter. Gutter explains that he played a part in creating the zombie virus, and that he was able to synthesize an antidote. He said he was trapped in his apartment, but he left the antidote and some research he had in his apartment, begging for the viewer to come find it. The two decide to set out the next day, and decide to have a going-away party. But the zombie who survived let other zombies in, and Jack and Ryan are forced to flee. Jack and Ryan set out in The Guy With The Car's car to find the antidote, and after several attacks by zombies, they meet The Guy With The Car, who has woken up from his coma. The Guy With The Car demands for the location of the Zombie antidote, but Jack drives away. Soon, Ryan realizes that they are being tailed by the Arthur Beansman community. They are captured, and while there soon realize that John is still alive, and was captured by the community. They then find out John is scheduled to be executed. Jack steals the cell key, and they rescue John and escape. They fill each other in, and the heroes drive over the George Washington Bridge, to get into New York City, where Gutter lived. But, The Guy With The Car blows the bridge and the car falls into the river. Jack and Ryan escape, but John is once again missing. Jack and Ryan camp for the night, and are attacked by zombies. The next day, they rob a grocery store and later run into John, who, without food turned into a "savage." However, John becomes himself again when he eats some of the stolen food. The heroes walk some more, and while camping for the night, Jack is attacked by an ABC Commando. However, Ryan kills the man. The next day, the heroes arrive at Gutter's apartment, only to find it still overrun by zombies. The heroes fight their way through, and when they make it to the top The Guy With The Car is waiting for them. John throws a paper "throwing knife" (an quick origami similar to a paper airplane) at The Guy With The Car. He stumbles into a window, and falls to his death. The heroes find the antidote, along with instructions to duplicate it. Jack says that with this, they now have a fighting chance at saving the world.

The Rise of the Dead
Six years have passed since Jack, Ryan, and John recovered the zombie antidote. The safe house they once hid out in is now inhabited by Annika, who has lived there in solitude for years. Annika lives off of honey, as the food that never expires. On May 23, 2019, a mortally wounded John returns to the house. He has been separated from Jack and Ryan for years, and has wandered alone with the zombie antidote. He gives the antidote to Annika to protect and he dies. After Annika buries John, she is attacked by a zombie named Alyssa. Alyssa bites Annika, and it is revealed that the thoughts of a zombie and victim are temporarily linked, and the two form a connection. Annika realizes that because Alyssa is still sentient, she killed intelligent beings when she fought off zombies. A hallucinated Alyssa soothes Annika's guilt and pleads with her to take the zombie antidote to cure her bite. Despite feeling unworthy to be the only person that will be saved by the antidote, she agrees to take the antidote. As she returns to take it, she witnesses Alyssa eating from her honey, and realizes that zombies can also survive off of honey. After realizing that Alyssa still has friends out there she can help, and that Alyssa can share the knowledge that honey can be used to feed zombies, she sacrifices herself to cure her new friend. The next day, the cured Alyssa honors Annika and is confronted by Ryan, now a zombie. Alyssa offers Annika's container of honey to the zombie, hinting that perhaps zombies and humans can learn to live in peace.

Rise of the Dead: The Undead Heart
Two years after Annika's sacrifice, Alyssa lives in the garage of the safe house - now decorated with Alyssa's artwork. Alyssa pines over her lost love from before the apocalypse, a girl named Molly. However, Molly returns to Alyssa - now a zombie. Alyssa's touch brings a small amount of Molly's humanity back. Alyssa, now immune to the zombie plague, learns from Dr. Gutter that a full transfusion of her blood to Molly could fully restore her. Alyssa makes arrangements to trade her life for Molly's. That night, she attempts to reconnect with Molly one final time, and it does not work. Alyssa is woken up to the sounds of a zombie attack. Jack enters the safe house and is cornered by Ryan, still a zombie. Alyssa intervenes and brings back some of Ryan's humanity as well. Some time later, Alyssa prepares to bring Molly to Dr. Gutter. However, the realization that her touch can help the world and Molly's refusal to go through with the procedure prompts Alyssa to let go of Molly once and for all. Five years later, a new society has arisen where humans and Half-zombies coexist, as Alyssa's touch spread to all of the undead. The apocalypse has ended and Alyssa is at peace.