The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 2 director Bill Condon has urged fans of the film series to respect Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart as they work past the heartache of their recent real-life split.

Fans have turned on the actress after she confessed to a fling with her married Snow White & the Huntsman director Rupert Sanders. The big reveal appears to have ended her romance with Twilight co-star Pattinson.

And as the couple's legion of followers attempt to deal with their own heartbreak about the break-up, filmmaker Condon is asking them to be as respectful to the former couple as Pattinson and Stewart have been to fans.

He tells Entertainment Weekly magazine, "The fact is, these are actors playing parts, and maybe it's not such a bad thing that people be reminded of that.

"Both of these actors gave heart and soul to the Twilight movies, not only during shooting, but also by navigating so graciously the whole life-in-a-fishbowl aspect of the phenomenon.

"They have always shown great respect for the fans who made these movies such a success. Now it's time that some of that respect be returned to them."

Both stars are expected to be part of the promotional circus for the the final Twilight film in the weeks leading up to its release.

Pattinson will return to the spotlight from his self-imposed exile next week when he promotes his new David Cronenberg movie Cosmopolis.