Trading Places

Trading Places (1983) is the title of a successful comedy film starring Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd and Jamie Lee Curtis. It was directed by John Landis and written by Timothy Harris and Herschel Weingrod.

Trivia

• The Duke brothers' attempt to corner the orange juice market is very similar to the real-life case of the Hunt brothers of Texas, who attempted to corner the silver market with the help of Arab investors. Eventually, the "Silver Thursday" market crash of March 27, 1980 devalued their silver holdings enough to make them fail to meet their $100 million margin call and forcing them to declare bankruptcy.
• The outside shots of the Duke & Duke building are reused in Andy Richter Controls the Universe.
• The Duke brothers later appear as two homeless men in Eddie Murphy's 1988 movie Coming to America.
• Mark Twain's The Million-Pound Banknote also revolves around a bet between two immensely wealthy businessmen who then toy with the life of a penniless man, but in this case with a far more benevolent intent.