“Joker” director Todd Philips has finally sent in the clown.

He took the stage at CinemaCon in Las Vegas this week to introduce the first teaser trailer for his upcoming comic book origin story starring Joaquin Phoenix as DC Comics’ iconic villain.

“There’s been a lot of chatter about what this film is and what it isn’t, and most of it hasn’t been very accurate,” Phillips says of the flick, set to premiere Oct. 4. “But it’s expected when you set out to make an origin story about a beloved character who basically has no definitive origin.”

And that might be because Philips himself has had trouble wrapping his head around the flick. Addressing the film’s air of mystery, he recalls even failing to deliver a clear description to his bosses at Warner Bros.

“It’s a tragedy,” he adds.

As Jimmy Durante’s “Smile” plays in the background, the audience is introduced to the events that led a once-mild-mannered Arthur into the deranged Joker we know.

“My mother always tells me to smile and put on a happy face — she told me I had a purpose to bring laughter and joy to the world,” says Arthur in a voiceover.

The teaser portrays ominous and abject snippets of Phoenix as Arthur Fleck: stumbling clown-clad through the streets of Gotham City, being hit by a car, beaten by Subway bullies, dancing with his mother (Frances Conroy), eating dinner with Sophie Dumond (Zazie Beetz), talking with an unknown character (Brian Tyree Henry) — and, finally, dying his hair “Joker” green.

And, of course, the sneak peek would not be complete without a hysterically laughing Joker.

“I used to think that my life was a tragedy, but now I realize it’s a comedy.”

As with every Joker movie that’s come before, secrecy and gossip will persist, but fans on Twitter are no less enticed.