Twentieth Century Fox has announced its intentions to bring its theme park brand to South Korea by 2018 in an attempt to attract tourists using the company’s film and television brands.

The operator has signed a memorandum of understanding with the government of South Gyeongsang Province in the southeast of the country, to form a joint venture starting next year.

The US$3.5bn (€2.6bn, £2bn) proposed park will be the second 20th Century Fox park planned, following on from a Malaysian version of the theme park which is set to open in 2016.

Included as part of a larger entertainment complex, the South Korean theme park will be accompanied by a resort, hotel, casino, sports facilities and a shopping mall.

The site for the theme park spans 2.85sq km (1.1sq m) and will be located just 20 minutes from the nearest international airport.

"Korea provides a unique opportunity for an international theme park destination that will be incredibly attractive to both thriving domestic consumers as well as a quickly growing tourist market from China, Japan and across Asia," said Jeffrey Godsick, president of Twentieth Fox Consumer Products.

"We will make the world's best theme park with Fox's powerful brands, such as Titanic and Ice Age, through close cooperation with South Gyeongsang Province."