Newt Gingrich Watches 'Bridesmaids' Before Detroit GOP Debate

Even with a debate looming in the background, Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich still found time for movie night.

During the course of his campaign, the former House speaker has talked tough on hard news, from Occupy Wall Street to the Solyndra bankruptcy scandal. In other moments, the GOP hopeful has shown his softer side, revealing some of his favorite films.

Hours before Wednesday's GOP debate in Detroit, CNN's Peter Hamby tweeted that Gingrich was watching "Bridesmaids". The blockbuster comedy leads viewers on a wacky journey, as a group of women prepare for their friend's big day. Hamby later tweeted that a Gingrich spokesman confirmed that the candidate was preparing for this big day by viewing the film.

Back in early October, the GOP hopeful opened up to a New Hampshire newspaper that he watched "The Hangover" seven times. Newt noted that the raucous Las Vegas-based comedy was "totally stupid", but added that he and his wife, Callista, "can't help ourselves".

A few weeks later, Gingrich's lineup of on-screen favorites gained some suspense. Facing lagging poll numbers, the Republican darkhorse likened himself to a dead character from the 1999 thriller, "The Sixth Sense."

In this classic, everyone knew Dr. Malcolm Crowe (played by Bruce Willis) was dead but Crowe himself. While campaigning in Iowa, Gingrich made the parallel, saying that the "elite media" may have written off his 2012 run, but that he knew his campaign was poised to rebound.

There was only one problem with Newt's nugget. Even if Crowe didn't know he was dead, he still died.

Fortunately for Gingrich, "Bridesmaids" bears a more optimistic plot -- and new figures released this week show power outsiders warming to his candidacy.