Veteran filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola says he is happy to see audiences flocking to cinema halls to watch "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer", terming the favourable response to the two big-ticket releases "a victory for cinema".

Coppola said this in response to fans' questions on his Instagram Stories, asking if he had watched Greta Gerwig's "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" by Christopher Nolan yet.

"I have yet to see them, but the fact that people are filling big theatres to see them and that they are neither sequels nor prequels, no number attached to them, meaning they are true one-offs, is a victory for cinema," the 84-year-old director said.

According to entertainment website The Hollywood Reporter, "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" have been on a roll since their opening weekend from July 21-23. Gerwig's film not only had one of the top openings since the COVID-19 pandemic but "Barbie" also broke the record for the biggest opening for a female director. As far as Nolan's movie is concerned, "Oppenheimer" ranked as the third-biggest opening ever for a biographical film in North America, the outlet stated.

While Coppola previously expressed his dislike for franchises, he was behind "The Godfather" film trilogy, which spawned from Mario Puzo's best-selling 1969 novel.

When another social media user asked him about the future of cinema, the director said he had big hopes for the film exhibition industry.

"My hunch is that we're on the verge of a golden age. Wonderful and illuminating cinema seen in large theatres," he said.

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