Trading Places is considered a modern reimagination of Mark Twain 's The Prince and the Pauper .
The storyline is a modern take on Mark Twain 's short story The Million Pound Bank Note ( filmed in 1954 by Ronald Neame as The Million Pound Note , starring Gregory Peck ) ; it also weaves in plot elements from Twain 's 1882 novel The Prince and the Pauper .
Trading Places