Quentin Tarantino told Deadline that he believes "a war for movies got played out this last year."

Tarantino referenced "commercial products" like Marvel films, "Stars Wars," and James Bond movies.

The director said it was "a really, really strong year" for "original movies."

Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.

Quentin Tarantino spoke to Deadline about the fight for audiences and cinemas that he and other auteur directors faced against the might of studio franchises such as the MCU, "Star Wars" and James Bond.

"I actually think a war for movies got played out this last year," Tarantino told Deadline.

"As far as I can see, the commercial product that is owned by the conglomerates, the projects everybody knows about and has in their DNA, whether it be the Marvel Comics, the 'Star Wars,' 'Godzilla' and James Bond, those films never had a better year than last year," the director said.

However, Tarantino believes that "cinema that doesn't fall into that blockbuster IP proof status, made its last stand this year."

Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt were both nominated for Oscars for "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood." Andrew Cooper/Columbia Pictures

"It would have been the year that their world domination would have been complete. But it kind of wasn't. A lot of original movie comment came out and demanded to be seen, and demanded to be seen at the theaters," said Tarantino.

"That ended up becoming a really, really strong year. I'm really proud to be nominated with the other films that just got nominated."

One of those films, of course, is Tarantino's own — "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood," which grossed $372.2 million worldwide and earned 10 Oscar nominations, including one for Best Picture and a Best Director nomination for Tarantino. He's also favorite to take home a third Best Original Screenplay Oscar this year.

As Tarantino points out, there has been a slew of auteur-directed cinema in the past year, including Martin Scorsese's "The Irishman," Sam Mendes' "1917," Taika Waititi's "Jojo Rabbit," Greta Gerwig's "Little Women," Noah Baumbach's "Marriage Story," and Bong Joon Ho's "Parasite" — all of them fellow Best Picture nominees.

Is "Joker" the sort of film that bridges the gap between auteur cinema and mainstream movies? CJ Entertainment/Warner Bros. Pictures/Sony Pictures

It remains to be seen what Tarantino thinks of the ninth and final nominee, "Joker," which seems to blur the line between studio tent pole and auteur cinema. Perhaps its the sort of film that can bridge the gap between the two, having earned 11 Oscar nominations and grossed over a $1 billion worldwide.

But Tarantino told Deadline that he is relieved that 2019 saw a barrage of original movies that movie-goers actually went to see.

"If it hadn't done it this year, it might have been the last stand for movies like that. This is a really groovy year," he said.

Read more:

How Golden Globes winner Quentin Tarantino steals from other movies

Robert Downey Jr. defended his Oscar-nominated blackface role in 'Tropic Thunder': 'I knew where my heart was'

The 'Captain Marvel' visual effects team referenced movies including 'Star Wars: The Phantom Menace' to de-age Samuel L. Jackson in the film