Mohegan Gaming and Entertainment has entered a strategic partnership with Paramount Pictures Corp. Under the agreement, Mohegan will add a Paramount-brand theme park at Project Inspire, the casino resort that Mohegan is building at Incheon International Airport in South Korea.
Whereas phase one of Inspire is slated to open in 2022, the Paramount-branded theme park will debut as part of Project Inspire’s “phase 1B” in 2025.
“We are proud to have Paramount Pictures join us as a strategic partner in the development of our innovative integrated entertainment resort concept,” said Kevin Brown, chairman of the Mohegan Tribe and of the Mohegan Gaming management board, in a statement.
Brown added: “With Paramount alongside as we answer the demand of today’s consumers, the Inspire model not only displays our commitment to trend-setting in this industry but also demonstrates the Mohegan Tribe’s commitment to growing South Korea’s travel, tourism and workforce development goals, while securing the generational sustainability of the Mohegan Tribe.”
Kevin Suh, executive vice president for themed entertainment for Paramount, noted: “Paramount is proud to announce Korea as one of the first locations for a world-class Paramount branded theme park. Paramount looks forward to its partnership with Inspire and to be part of one of the world’s premiere entertainment destinations at Inspire.”
Mohegan Gaming plans to break ground on the $5 billion Inspire resort in May 2019. Phase one, with a price tag of roughly $1.6 billion, includes 1,250 hotel rooms, a casino open to foreigners exclusively, entertainment spaces and a 1,500-seat concert/sports arena.
Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment’s partnership with Paramount isn’t the first time the tribal gaming arm has joined forces with a major entertainment brand on international business. In October, Mohegan and Live Nation Entertainment, the world’s leading live entertainment company, entered a multi-year partnership to acquire talent for Project Inspire. While the parties have long maintained a fruitful partnership, drawing crowds to the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, this partnership heralds a new frontier.
“Now, we are partnering again to do the same, only this time it will be at the Inspire Super Arena at the Incheon International Airport, right in the heart of the burgeoning Northern Asia entertainment market. The move further solidifies MGE’s position as the premier global gaming and entertainment resort developer and operator,” said Mario Kontomerkos, Chief Executive Officer, Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment.
