Jayan acted in several ensemble cast movies, mostly with Prem Nazir. The duo acted in films such as "Nayattu, Love in Singapore, Chandrahasam, Thacholi Ambu, Kannappanunni, Palattu Kunjikkannan, Mamangam, Prabhu" etc. all of which were top-grossing movies at the box office. He also acted with other popular actors of the time, such as Soman, Sukumaran and Madhu in many films. In early films before 1979 (e.g. "Thacholi Ambu" and "Panchami"), he had negative or supporting roles. But later films in the beginning of 1980 relied heavily on Jayan's drawing power as an action hero and placed him as the central character. In 1980, the duo Jayan and Prem Nazir were cast in "Ariyapedatha Rahasiyam" by P. Venu, that showcased the famous fight scene in Malayalam cinema. Prem Nazir agreed to play a supporting role in "Nayattu", which was very unlikely for a superstar of those times. He had agreed to do this as a token of friendship with Jayan and the director Sreekumaran Thamby. The duo had many actions films together such as "Irumbazhikal", "Love in Singapore" etc. where the box office draw was huge.