Trading Places: The top bloopers you didn’t catch
For me, Trading Places is the greatest and one of the most underrated Christmas movies of all time.
It’s almost criminal we never got to see more of Eddie Murphy and Dan Aykroyd working together, they had such great chemistry. And let’s not forget 25-year-old Jamie Lee Curtis — the smoking hot and a phenomenal actress delivered some unforgettable scenes.
But did you know that several hilarious moments in the film happened completely by accident?
If any other actors had been cast in Trading Places, it simply wouldn’t have worked. It’s like a rare alignment of the planets — everything came together perfectly. From Eddie Murphy’s comedic genius to Dan Aykroyd’s sharp performance and Jamie Lee Curtis’s unforgettable presence at just 25 years old (yes, she was smokin’ hot), this movie is nothing short of brilliant.
Released nearly 40 years ago, it remains a timeless classic. Can you believe that? Four decades later, you’d think a movie of that age would feel dated, yet Trading Places still feels fresh every time. Many fans even make it a Christmas tradition, proving its enduring charm.
Stay tuned as we dive into behind-the-scenes stories, unexpected bloopers, and little-known facts that make Trading Places the comedy masterpiece it is today.
The deeper message of the movie
If you haven’t seen Trading Places, it’s a classic comedy from 1983 about a wild social experiment. Two rich brothers, Randolph and Mortimer Duke, make a bet to see if a person’s success is based on their environment or their personality.
To test their theory, they swap the lives of their spoiled, wealthy employee, Louis Winthorpe III (Dan Aykroyd), with a fast-talking street hustler, Billy Ray Valentine (Eddie Murphy).
The Dukes completely wreck Louis’s life — taking away his money, job, and status — and hand it all to Billy Ray. But when Louis and Billy Ray figure out they’re being played, they join forces with a clever woman named Ophelia (Jamie Lee Curtis) to get back at the Dukes and teach them a lesson they’ll never forget.
It’s a sharp, funny movie about class, greed, and what really makes a person who they are. One of its deeper messages — being careful about judging others —resonates just as much today.
A tennis game inspired the screenwriters
Trading Places was written by Timothy Harris and Herschel Weingrod, and the idea came to life in the early 1980s when Harris met two wealthy (and incredibly cheap) brothers who couldn’t stop competing with each other.
Screenwriter Timothy Harris shared that he used to play tennis with two brothers who were both doctors. They were incredibly annoying to play with because they constantly argued, not just about the game, but about everything.
Harris got the idea to turn this dynamic into a story and pitched the concept of brothers arguing over the “nature versus nurture” debate to his writing partner, Herschel Weingrod. The rest, as they say, is comedy gold.
A bikini picture changed everything
The story was originally meant to star comedy legends Richard Pryor and Gene Wilder.
When that didn’t work out, director John Landis brought in Dan Aykroyd, who he’d worked with before, and Eddie Murphy, who was just starting to make waves in Hollywood with this being only his second movie.
”The only character in the script I had a problem with, because she’s such a fantasy, is Ophelia. The classic ‘hooker with a heart of gold’ — she’s such a fantasy that I thought how the fuck am I going to get away with this?’,” Landis said.
John Landis made a daring move when he approached Jamie Lee Curtis for Ophelia. He had her in mind for the role, but the studio wasn’t on board at first. Back then, Curtis was primarily known for her scream-queen roles in horror films.
It would be Curtis’ first major big-budget film, a real A-list opportunity that gave her the chance to show she could do more than just outrun a slasher in a hockey mask.
“Nobody else wanted me. I guarantee you, John Landis was the only person who said, ‘She’s going to play this part.’ And without that moment I wouldn’t have now the career that I get to have,” Curtis shared.
John Landis later admitted that Curtis’ decision to do a topless scene helped change the minds of the Paramount executives. After seeing a photo of her in a bikini, they were convinced it would help make the movie more marketable.
