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A premiere of the dark new “Joker’’ flick starring Joaquin Phoenix netted an 8-minute standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival over the weekend.

Phoenix — who recreates the “Batman” arch-villain in the highly anticipated upcoming movie — was present for the Saturday night screening, as was its director, Todd Phillips, and co-star Zazie Beetz.

When Phoenix’s name appeared in the credits at the end, shouts of “Bravo!’’ erupted.

Earlier in the day, Phoenix, 44, said he stayed away from past actors’ incarnations of the twisted character. Heath Ledger famously portrayed the Joker in 2008’s “The Dark Knight’’ Batman-franchise flick. He died months later of an accidental drug overdose.

“I didn’t refer to any past iteration of the character,” Phoenix said at the Venice fest. “It just felt like something that was our creation in some ways.”