Coronavirus: 2020 Ebertfest canceled in Champaign

Roger Ebert’s Film Festival, an annual event in Champaign, is putting off its 22nd edition until 2021.

Originally scheduled for April in its traditional location, the Virginia Theatre, the fest honoring the spirit of the late Chicago Sun-Times film critic was bumped when the University of Illinois, a sponsor, halted all events with more than 50 attendees.

“The audience and our filmmakers help make our festival so special and so beautiful that it hurts to cancel it, but we must put concern for health and welfare foremost,” host and co-founder Chaz Ebert said in a statement.

Titles set for this year’s Ebertfest included Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Cotton Club Encore,” the Farrelly brothers’ “There’s Something About Mary” and Ari Aster’s “Hereditary.”