Trading Places Trading Places Trading Places is a 1983 American comedy film directed by John Landis and starring Dan Aykroyd and Eddie Murphy. It tells the story of an upper-class commodities broker and a homeless street hustler whose lives cross paths when they are unknowingly made part of an elaborate bet. Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche, Denholm Elliott, and Jamie Lee Curtis also star. The storyline is often called a modern take on Mark Twain's classic 19th-century novel "The Prince and the Pauper". The film was written by Timothy Harris and Herschel Weingrod and was produced by Aaron Russo. It was released to
Eddie Murphy being heavily re-written from comic relief to love interest, ultimately went to future "7th Heaven" star Catherine Hicks. By this point Murphy's near-exclusive contract with Paramount Pictures rivaled "Star Trek" as Paramount's most lucrative franchise. In 1986, Murphy starred in the supernatural comedy, "The Golden Child". Although "The Golden Child" performed well at the box office, the movie was not as critically acclaimed as "48 Hrs.", "Trading Places", and "Beverly Hills Cop". "The Golden Child" was considered a change of pace for Murphy because of the supernatural setting as opposed to the more "street smart" settings of Murphy's previous efforts.