Axios D.C. PM
October 22, 2026
It's Thursday afternoon. Time to make those weekend plans!
📺 What's on the tube: D.C.'s pro teams are off, but there's Thursday Night Football and an NBA doubleheader.
- 🏈 Patriots at Bears, 8:15pm, Prime Video
- 🏀 Cavaliers at 76ers, 7pm, followed by Nuggets at Thunder, 9:30pm — both on ESPN
Today’s newsletter is 561 words — a 2-minute read.
1 big thing: 👻 Halloween spookiness, plus Katseye
Get your spooky on this weekend at several frightening events around Washington.
Why it matters: We have a week left to go all-in on Halloween before we transition to holiday season madness.
State of play: Kick your scary bender off tomorrow with Night of the Living Zoo at — you guessed it — the National Zoo.
- Grown-ups can party in costume and after hours at the zoo with live music and DJ sets, animal-inspired tarot readings, carousel rides, fire breathers and acrobats, piercings and flash tats, and food trucks and unlimited drinks. (Tickets $75)
On Saturday, head out to the Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly for its annual Air & Scare event.
- Expect a fashion show, trick-or-treating, pics with Star Wars characters, and Halloween crafts and story time for the littles. (Free; passes for outdoor activities currently sold out, but more may become available; indoor activities don't require passes)
Wrap things up Sunday with one of Del Ray's most beloved traditions: The Halloween parade.
- It's the Alexandria hood's 30th year hosting the event, in which kiddos, pets and decked-out strollers strut their stuff and vie for awards.
- Don't forget to check out the kids zone behind Pork Barrel, plus the local Halloween pop-up bar, Nightmare on the Avenue. (Free to attend)
More happening this weekend:
😝 Parks & Rec star Aziz Ansari will perform stand-up tonight at the Warner Theatre. | First show sold out; second show tickets start at $59
🎶 Meanwhile, Katseye — dubbed "the world's biggest girl group" — will perform at Capital One Arena tonight. | Ticket prices vary
🖼️ A new exhibit about the large-scale sculptor Beverly Pepper opens tomorrow at the National Museum of Women in the Arts. | Tickets are $16 for adults
🎤 Jerry Seinfeld will be crackin' jokes during multiple shows at The Anthem tomorrow and Saturday. | Ticket prices vary
🏃 Cheer on the runners at the annual Marine Corps Marathon winding through D.C. and Arlington on Sunday. | Free to attend
2. 📺 New: "Nobody Wants This" and "The Invite"
Whether you like your comedy dark, romantic or mysterious, this weekend's streaming picks have you covered.
The Invite — Comedy-drama available tomorrow on HBO Max
- Olivia Wilde and Seth Rogen play a married San Francisco couple who invite their upstairs neighbors (Penélope Cruz and Edward Norton) to dinner, where the conversation exposes trouble in both relationships.
Nobody Wants This — Season 3 available today on Netflix
- Joanne (Kristen Bell) and Noah (Adam Brody) settle into living together as Morgan, Sasha and Esther deal with the aftermath of their own breakups.
- The latest: Sarah Silverman and Andrew Rannells join Joanne's conversion class as her rabbi and a fellow student.
Paralyzed by Hope: The Maria Bamford Story — Documentary available tomorrow on Netflix
- Maria Bamford tells the story of her comedy career and mental health, with the film moving between her stage work, family life and nearly four years of footage captured by co-directors Judd Apatow and Neil Berkeley.
🚗 Mimi is OOO!
This newsletter was edited by Alexa Mencia Orozco.