The First Elder is a character on The X-Files, played by Don S. Williams. Also known simply as The Elder, and The Fat Man to fans. He is a member of the Syndicate, the shadowy organization that Cigarette Smoking Man and Well-Manicured Man also belong to.

Although no clear hierarchy is ever given for the Syndicate, First Elder seems to be the member in charge of things in the absence of Conrad Strughold, who is possibly unable to enter the U.S. and therefore unable to participate in most Syndicate meetings and activities directly.

The Elder is introduced in season 3 in the episode 3X10 titled "The Blessing Way", along with the Well-Manicured Man. He is about 6'4", 275lb, has a grave voice and is shown to be a stately, conservative gentleman, who enjoys horse racing, and is usually seen sipping a cup of tea while his fellow Elders discussed their concerns. Whenever he received distressing news, he generally weighed all options rather than breaking into anger. However, there were times when the Cigarette Smoking Man tried his patience, and he seemed to be livid under the surface. He did not share the Cigarette Smoking Man's belief that killing Mulder would make him a martyr and thus risk exposure of the Syndicate.

The Elder only directly interacted with Mulder and Scully once, in "731" when he approached Scully in a misinformation campaign. Playing on her skepticism towards all things extraterrestrial, the Elder managed to convince Scully that all alleged alien abductions (including her own) were actually the work of renegade Syndicate scientists who were conducting secret experiments on an unsuspecting populace.

In season 5, the Elder orders the assassination of the Cigarette Smoking Man. Whether he acted on his own, or other Syndicate members had knowledge of the plan is unclear. Months later, he was forced to welcome the Cigarette Smoking Man, who somehow managed to survive the attempt on his life, back into the fold. It was around this time a second extraterrestrial faction appeared, opposed to the alien Colonists, the faction that the Syndicate was collaborating with. The Well-Manicured Man suggested that the Syndicate should side with the rebels. The Elder refused, believing that only cooperation with the Colonists would ensure their survival.

In season 6's "Full Disclosure" two-parter ("Two Fathers"/"One Son"), the Syndicate's successful creation of the first true alien-human hybrid, Cassandra Spender, prompts them to deliver her to the Colonists, as per their 1973 agreement. At El Rico Air Force Base, the Elder and the rest of the Syndicate, including their families, arrive and await the Colonists, in order to not only deliver the hybrid, but also to be taken and become hybrids themselves. However, the alien rebels ambushed the Syndicate, and in order to prevent the Colonists from obtaining a hybrid, quickly incinerated them. The Elder, as well as most of the rest of the Syndicate, with the notable exceptions of Cigarette Smoking Man and Conrad Strughold, perished in the attack. Other members of the Syndicate are The Second Elder, The Third Elder and The Fourth Elder.

His known subordinates included the Senior Agent, the Red Haired Man, the Gray Haired Man, Scott Ostelhoff, and Quiet Willy.