Eddie Murphy 1982. Nolte was scheduled to host the December 11, 1982, Christmas episode of "Saturday Night Live", but became too ill to host, so Murphy took over. He became the only cast member to host while still a regular. Murphy opened the show with the phrase, "Live from New York, It's the Eddie Murphy Show!" The following year, Murphy starred in "Trading Places" with fellow "SNL" alumnus Dan Aykroyd. The movie marked the first of Murphy's collaborations with director John Landis (who also directed Murphy in "Coming to America" and "Beverly Hills Cop III") and proved to be an even greater
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.